Reciprocity or Compromise

Panic. Yes. Panic was the emotion that flooded over me. It all went wrong. Everything went wrong. Why wouldn’t things just go smoothly? Why does the world hate me so? Even still, I stand in the face of casualty and sorrow.

Perhaps it was indignant of me to only focus on what a great mishap I had caused unto myself. I mean, not only did my secret get revealed to these children who would surely blab their mouth off to everyone, but I definitely stumbled upon something I shouldn’t have. 

I should feel pitiful. I should be feeling like I was supposed to help the boy. 

Slaves weren’t necessarily illegal in the Empire. In fact, it’s probably encouraged among the lower populace to cut costs. But that was just that; the lower populace. Where I currently was, in the estate of a noble no less, shouldn’t have been a place where I would’ve encountered a slave.

Nobility have a sense of dignity to themselves, or at least self-perceived that is. As such, owning slaves is a taboo that none should have to bequeath among themselves. Of course, it only made sense. A noble represented money and power. There would be absolutely no reason that a noble would need to stoop down as low as a commoner to pay for slaves. It was societally frowned upon in the upper hierarchical class. No noble, under any circumstances, would have a slave… right? Right!?

And perhaps, that was my second mistake in this series of unfortunate events. I instinctively took a step back. Maybe due to fear, maybe due to the absurdity of this situation. At any rate, it didn’t matter what reasoning I had, only the teleological outcome of the situation. I betrayed the boy, not once, but twice. I saw his bewildered yet hopeful eyes fade into the black pit of disappointment. The slight moving of his jaw where there should’ve been a crack of hope, lay the pit of sorrow and helplessness.

It was to my circumstantial luck, but my emotional dismay, that the boy and girl who fell down with me were silent from shock. 

Ironically, the pause of despair we felt seemed long yet short.

“Who’s there!?”

A shout reverberated through the dungeon cellars, bouncing around as if to mock us. Fuck, fuck, fuck. Why does this have to happen!? It’s just my luck as well.

Everyone around me realized the gravity of the situation. We couldn’t get caught here no matter what. Perhaps those numskull idiots I thought were children had some sense in them after all. Though I suppose chasing after a helpless girl for no reason is a pretty big pit to recover from.

Barrels, boxes, and the scent of darkness were all there was around to help us hide. Clamoring quickly, yet as silent as possible, we dove behind cover. Pleasee, don’t notice us. I already have enough on my plate to deal with. There wasn’t enough space to hide all of us, and if you looked close enough, you could definitely find out that we were here. We all just hoped, no, prayed that the darkness of the cellar would hide us well enough.

*thud thud*

The bemoaning steps thudded down the stairwell, taking its sweet time getting down to the bottom. It was agony. Three, two, one steps away from the bottom of the stairwell. My ears had gone so absurdly sharp throughout this endeavor that I swear I could hear the blood rushing through my veins. The breathing of the children around me, heightened to the degree of insanity due to the adrenaline, felt like the roar of thunder. Would you please just shut up!?

Before long, the footsteps stopped at ground level. I saw the lantern being carried lifted higher, as if to get a better inspection of the area. The warm light felt obscenely cold. The eyes, like lasers, searched the area, and I just barely managed to dodge its line of sight. However, just as I thought it was over, I heard the sound of shuffling. That’s strange. Wouldn’t someone continue searching, or just promptly leave? And so, against my better judgment, I poked my head a bit out to get a closer look. He was reaching in his pocket… for a lighter?

It was ornately decorated with almost golden trims. I saw him open a sort of compartment in the contraption, causing it to open up a door as he inserted a metal rod inside it. With a snap, it closed back up, and with another click, a flame flickered from the top. If anything, it just seemed like a fancy lighter. However, that was only if you paid attention to the contraption, and not what effects it had upon the world. Suddenly, I felt a rush of wind, though there was none. Tendrils of yellow energy manifested from the air, swirling in onto the flame. I knew from experience that these were the tendrils of magic, visible only to spirits. But what was happening?

As if to confirm my suspicions the flame grew brighter and brighter yet, turning a pinkish hue as it conflagrated into an inferno that engulfed the room. My entire body instantly perspired from the sheer heat of the explosion. Just as surprised, or perhaps even more so than me, he quickly dropped the lighter. And in the brief moment between it shattering on the floor, the delicate thing, and the light receding from the now forgone flame, our eyes made contact. Fredereck.

“What were you thinking!?” Christine’s annoyed and frustrated voice forced its way in my eyes as she tugged my hair. Obviously, I didn’t have a proper response to that, but still! Could she cut it out? Even though I deserved it, it still hurts to get your hair tugged on you know?

With a hefty sigh, she stopped pulling my hair back and flopped down on her chair, sinking in its cushions. “I guess it couldn’t have been helped. But couldn’t you have thought of a better way to handle it?” Her seething annoyance shattered any semblance of tranquility there could’ve been.

She shot a dejected glance to the side. Yes, we weren’t the only ones in this room. In fact, Fredereck was also just as annoyed at me. Apparently, this situation was all my fault, or maybe I was just an easy scapegoat to cast all the blame on. Though contrary to how Christine was able to voice her frustrations on me (unfortunately), Fredereck could do no such thing. So that a least provided me a sort of solace in this scenario.

We were in a sealed room. A room with thick walls where people could talk with absolutely no one eavesdropping. Everyone was ushered out of it, par Fredereck, Christine, and me. Perhaps maybe that was why these two dropped all the noble dignity they had before they came into this room, and were now one, sprawled out in frustration, or clutching his head in frustration. Either way, they were frustrated.

Perhaps this was uncharacteristic for nobles even with the current situation but as I later learned, Christine and Fredereck were a sort of old “friends” in a sense.

In response to Christine’s glare, Fredereck promptly sighed, “You explain whatever that is first” as he pointed at me.

Um, excuse me? Did you just refer to me as a that?

“She’s not a that. And you explain yourself first! Why do you have a slave in your creepy basement! What, is it your personal slave? Disgusting”

Yeah, go get him Christine! I’m cheering you on from within!

“I’ll have you know that I don’t do any such thing. At any rate, slavery is normal, THAT, is not!”

“Slavery is NOT normal here, and you and I both know that, and neither is your treatment of such slaves. Also, as I said before, she’s not a THAT. She’s my little sister, so I hope you refer to her properly”

“Your little sister? Well, can you tell me why your little sister is either breaking our current understanding of magic, not human, or BOTH!?”

“Amendment 16 of the rules of governance, if you want to go through a background check you’re going to have to either have a sufficient reason or the consent of both parties”

“You and I both know that’s not the full extent of that law. And plus, SHE’S NOT HUMAN! You can’t apply these laws to her”

“How dare you call her not human? The only inhuman thing around here is your treatment to the slave”

“You clearly do not have a warrant to meddle in such affairs”

“I don’t NEED a warrant because you personally invited me over to YOUR house, and due to YOUR mismanagement, you revealed not only whatever information you wanted to keep hidden but also nearly violated my sister’s privacy”

“Don’t phrase it like ‘privacy’, I’m not such an indecent person as to do such a thing. This is clearly not an issue related to this ‘privacy you speak of!”

“Indecency? YOU of all people want to talk about indecency? You know I have every right to blab to all the other nobles what atrocious deeds you have. You want me to ruin what little standing you already have?”

“I have my circumstances! Plus, I don’t think you would want me telling all my connections about your freak of a sister do you?”

“I don’t think they’d believe something as ludicrous as an ‘inhuman’ person coming from a person who holds slaves! And seeing as you mentioned your circumstances, how about you explain these circumstances of yours?”

“I am under no obligation to tell you anything about my internal affairs”

“Then I am of no obligation to tell you anything about my little sister”

And thus, it reached a standstill. In all honesty, though the conversation went quick, full of intense emotions, it warmed my heart that Christine referred to me as her sister. I guess the fact hadn’t really sunk in yet, but it was ever so sweet and loving. The empty void that was left in my heart that I tried so hard to hide, caused by the loss of everything I loved, everything I knew, at least now I know that there is someone I can care for within it.

With a newfound resolve, I decided to support Christine. Though… I suppose we’re going to have to talk about both anyway, so I guess it doesn’t really matter who goes first.

“Christine, help me!” I whimpered as I went over to Christine, acting every bit like the little girl I looked like. It was an act I say, an act! I tried my best to get some tears coaxing from the “horrifying” situation of Fredereck trying to invade my “personal” privacy. Personally, I would’ve actually preferred if they talked about me first because I wanted to understand more about my situation and whatever I was, but I guess it couldn’t be helped.

“Two on one Fredereck, give it up”

“Ughhh, fine. Where do you want to start?” He grumbled in frustration. Seems like he forfeited his stance. Hmm, do I have a knack for this or what? Probably not.

“First, start with whatever the hell that lighter was”

However, contrary to what I thought she’d ask first, she inquired about the lighter. I mean, I was plenty fascinated by it too, but considering how we just talked a whole lot about how much slaves were a big importance… I guess it was just an outward facade?

With a heavy sigh, he explained.

“I was hoping you wouldn’t ask about that first, but I guess it's only to be expected. Listen, you absolutely cannot tell anyone about this. It won’t only do badly for me, but I’m sure you can imagine the consequences it’ll have on you as well right?”

At the time, I couldn’t really understand the significance of why it would hurt Christine. Logically speaking, it should only hurt Fredereck because he’s the one whose information is being leaked right? However, as Christine later explained to me, if something like that came to light, and it was found out that Christine had connections with Fredereck, suspicions would start to rise. Along with a host of other problems, it definitely wasn’t the right idea for her to intentionally leak this discovery of something that can shake our understanding of the world. Yes, it was a revolutionary discovery.

“That was a type of flame that’s able to sense the strength of the magic around the area”

Christine’s eyes widened in disbelief as if she was wondering if that was really possible.

“It’s not a typical fire, it comes from the burning of a certain mineral compound I discovered. The fire reacts to the strength of magic nearby. Burning brighter and larger, and turning stronger a color depending on how powerful the magic source is. Which is why I’m so confused as to whatever the hell she is. I’m sure you already know, but the only beings that are able to have such strong powers… is that of the upper echelon of spirits. The Aberrations”

“There’s no way. No no no way that’s possible” Christine flat out rebutted.

I agreed with her. Spirits are generally categorized by their level of influence on the world, as such their power. Though I suppose as rare as they are, the categorization system is fitting for how little we know about them. At the bottom of the barrel, there are wisps. These are simply fragments of sentient magic. They’re fairly uncommon, but in comparison to general spirits, they are abundant. Though researchers classify these as spirits, they definitely aren’t what most people think of when they think of a spirit (I mean, the rich even sometimes keep them as pets). General spirits, on the other hand, are the ones feared and most studied. 

Back during my fight with Anniumpa, I was terrified by the destructive horror of the fire being wielded. I had suspected it was the case, but Christine later confirmed with me that that was indeed a spirit that was trapped within that vial of hers. Which to be honest, shouldn’t have been possible with our current understanding of magic and metals. However, it was unmistakable that that spirit was a general spirit. In fact, even though the burning of Aeolian’s post was officially documented that raiders caused fall to the place, rumors were deliberately spread that a spirit caused its destruction. 

I guess it wasn’t really that far fetched. Though the spirit we encountered, although relatively strong, wouldn’t have been able to burn down the entire outpost. The general population doesn’t know that though. The scary thing was, we speculated that perhaps it was only so weak was because of its recent release from its chamber of captivity. If given time to grow, it definitely could’ve amassed enough strength to wipe Aeolian’s post clear off the map. That was just how scary general spirits were.

And here, this person in front of me was trying to tell me that I housed power even greater than that!? Just the simple thought was enough to send chills up my spine. There has ever only been one documented case of an Aberration class spirit called Calamity. Around 700 years ago, a crater the size of a meteor impact appeared, blowing off an entire cliff side of the face of the planet. Yes, destruction on par with the size of a meteor! Even though the rest of the story was overall very vague, as expected for such an old tale, the effects remain clearly visible.

As such, I had to agree with Christine. “There is no possible way that I could be on that level. I mean, I almost died, twice!”

“Yeah, isn’t that a quick assumption to make?”

“Lyrah, you saw how that contraption of mine literally exploded in my hand right? If not for the fact that that type of flame has an abnormally low temperature, we probably all would’ve died right there. You felt how hot that was right? If I had a spare, I would show you that normally you wouldn’t even be able to feel it even if you were in direct contact.”

I do recall that the explosion instantly made me swell up in sweat. At the time I didn’t think much of it, but it certainly was surprising that the heat was so low for that level of impact.

Still, I was skeptical. I mean, how couldn’t I be? This man quite literally showed up, introduced a new piece of technology that even Christine was surprised existed, and declared that I had enough power to obliterate a landmark off the face of the planet. No matter how you looked at it, it was simply unreasonable.

“How do you even know this works? Isn’t this some brand new technology? I don’t think you have the right to make such a bold claim like that” Christine defended me.

With a sigh, he explained.

“...Three months ago, the mine that I own, you know the one next to the Yozei Forest, was attacked by a spirit. Nothing out of the ordinary, however, this one was particularly strong. It managed to throw itself into the caves where the people were mining. Apparently, that place we were mining had this metal that I’ve now dubbed calamite, after Calamity, which caused a strong reaction with the spirit. Upon receiving a disastrous explosion, the metal caught fire and shined this pink hue. The rampage continued and eventually, the spirit fled back into the forest. The flames, however, were no longer bright pink but were now just normal looking flames. Everyone knew the situation was strange. I mean, a metal that burns like wood? That’s unheard of. The tests we ran were pretty conclusive as well. Long story short, we found a strong correlation between the strength and color of the flame depending on the strength of the amount of magic nearby. Tested with the spirits in the forest of course, though it was particularly difficult with the wisps because they ran away so often”

Disregarding his clearly poor and terrible naming sense of the metal, it did spark a few curiosities within me. The Yozei forest is known to be a place relatively dense in the number of spirits, though it is unknown why. My question was, what was the reason that the spirits fled? As far as I looked back through the books, spirits usually tricked or attacked humans… right? 

“Hey, Fredereck, why did the spirits run?” I cautiously asked. I had a sneaking suspicion that it had to do with the calamite.

“..., that’s a good question”

Both Christine and Fredereck paused into deep thought as if to consider the ever-increasing absurdity of the situation.

“When you lit the lighter back in the cellar, I saw something. Tendrils of magic swirled into it which caused it to go brighter. I was too caught up in the situation back then, but looking back at it now, it only makes sense. The flame was feeding on my magic”

“Feeding…? You mean you can see the current? The blanket of magic?”

He was cautious, as he should be. This was his first time hearing about any of this after all.

“I believe so…, at any rate, I think that was the reason why the wisps ran away. As for the general spirit… the flames were bright yeah? Maybe it ran because it absorbed enough of its power? It would be great if we could run some tests in here, but I don’t want to explode anything anymore, so I guess that’s out of the question. At any rate, if the flame’s strength is directly proportional to the strength of the amount of magic sucked in, then even if I’m not Aberration level, I still have enough strength to explode your apparatus… sorry about that by the way”

Silence. There were no words. Both Christine and Fredereck were deep in thought. Was what I said really that revolutionary? I suppose it was, considering the fact that I’m the only one who’s able to see the fabric of magic. Still, could these people speak up already? Do you know how awkward it is for no one to respond to you after you say something? Very, very awkward.

At long last, Christine spoke up, “At any rate, now that you know the truth about Lyrah, you and I both understand the gravity of this situation right?”

“Yeah”

Wait what? Gravity of what situation? What were these people talking about? I thought I just mentioned a reason for the story? I didn’t particularly say anything insightful…?

“At any rate, we need to make arrangements. Can I borrow Lyrah in 3 months to go to the mines?”

Wait, what?

“Yeah, that’s fine. We’re going to need more information about this anyways”

Information about what? Is it just me or am I the only one who doesn’t know what the hell is going on!?!?!?

“Sounds good”

“What about the slave? The children?”

“The slave we can silence… but the children, I’ll deal with it”

What!? Silence? Excuse me? Can someone please tell me what the heck is going on? You guys are making arrangements without consulting me!? Helloooo, I’m the one who’s actually going to be going there? Please, someone, help me!

“I’d rather we not silence him if need be. I’d rather avoid any needless shedding. Plus you’re low on personnel right? Why not bring him along?”

God if you exist, please, someone, please explain to me what is going on!

Caake

Guys, I'm not dead... I think. It's looking pretty bleak over here. Lots and lots of homework to do. What, am I making an excuse as to why I didn't write much? Surely not. At any rate, school has taken up a majority of my time, and now that finals week is gonna be approaching, that means its gonna be even busier. I'll try to write when I have the motivation time though.

Thank you so much for reading this chapter! Have a fantastic Thanksgiving <3