“Evening.” Floating just over the surface of the rocky peak of the mountain, I call out casually. “Do you mind if I stay here for a bit? I can go to the next mountain over if not, it’s just that this one is closest to the academy.”

  The place would look deserted to most casual observers, but I can see the high elven girl sitting behind a boulder, out of line of sight of the path up to the top, as well as her bodyguards spread around the area.

  She jumps in surprise, probably not having heard me fly up, gets up and steps out from behind the boulder. Her eyebrows raise upon seeing me. “You are… Gerald, correct? For what reason have you come here?”

  This time it’s my turn to be surprised. I hadn’t expected her to know my name. “To see the sunset. Is the view good from here?”

  “Of course.” She replies. “But do you really expect me to believe that is why you are here?”

  “I don’t really care either way.” I state, getting my ‘eye’ into a suitable position on my body and settling myself down on a rock to wait. “It won’t change the sunset. Speaking of, has it started? I can’t tell without activating this, and I want the first thing I see to be the sunset.” I raise the eye up to indicate it before setting it back down in position.

  “You are blind? I apologise, I had not heard.” She bows her head slightly.

  “Don’t worry about it, I don’t exactly act like it – and completely colour-blind is more accurate.” I reply. “It’s complicated. The academy let me borrow a magic tool to let me see and read things, but suffice to say it’s a little short-sighted. So, I’ve been working on making my own… And today’s the day. Or, well, night.”

  “The sunset is starting.” She says quietly, looking out into the distance.

  “Thank you.” I send a tendril of mana into my magic tool, activating it. I had already tested it at the academy, making sure it would work and all.

  But still, as my ‘eye’ ‘opens’, all I can think is that it is, truly, beautiful.

  Waves of clouds bathed in red stretch out above me into the distance, mirrored below after a way by the actual sea, reflecting some of the red of the sky.

  It’s clear to me that my ‘eye’ isn’t perfect. Some of the wisps and curls of the clouds and details of the terrain are lost to me, but still – I did it.

  Finally, after over two years of darkness, without colour, unable to see the green of a leaf or the brown of soil, finally, finally, I did it. I can see.

  I can see, and nobody can take that away from me again.

  “They say that you don’t know what you’ve got until it’s gone.” I speak peacefully, still looking at the sky. “I never realised how true that saying was until it happened to me.”

  Although I have no clue how it ties in to building parking lots.

  I’ve got a long way left to go, Things I want to do. I’ve come a long way, too. Have a lot of things to be thankful for. Maybe I’d be happier if I spent a bit more time appreciating things as simple as the sunset.

  We watch in silence for a while, the clouds slowly drifting across the sky and the sun dipping lower over the horizon.

  “So…” She hesitantly voices, “You can fly, yes? What’s it like?”

  “Wish I knew.” I reply wistfully. “But now I’ll be able to see the views, at least.”

  “I see…” She seems somewhat disappointed.

  Recomposing herself, she says, “Can I ask that you not reveal to anyone that I come here?”

  “Sure.” I agree easily.

  “No, really. I don’t want to have to find another place again.” She emphasizes.

  “Relax, I already said I wouldn’t tell anyone.” I reassure. “I get wanting to be alone. You’re royalty, so if anyone knew where you were people’d flock there, right? I get it. I’m antisocial, not an ass.”

  “Has anybody ever told you that you’re weird?” She says frankly.

  “When a high elf talks with a living fork, what exactly is normal?” I reply, uncaring.

  She blinks, not quite knowing how to respond to that.

  “By the way, I don’t think I ever got your name.” I note. I could just go through my memory and get it from someone who said it, but I couldn’t be bothered.

  “It’s Faida.” She replies reflexively, almost appearing shocked.

  “Well, nice to meet you, Faida.” I say. “Would you mind if I come here every now and again? The view here really is quite nice.”

  “…I suppose so.” She accedes after a couple moments of contemplation.

  “Thanks.”

  More time passes in silence, and the sky slowly grows darker. The twinkle of stars begins to peek out around and in between the clouds.

  I can hardly believe my singular artificial eye at the sight – literally.

  “Faida, does the lens on my eye have a defect, or do those stars have shapes?” I ask incredulously.

  “Yes, of course.” Faida nods with a hint of confusion. “Each star represents one of the gods, and bears their symbol.”

  “I… See. Nothing in the library mentioned this.” I say slowly.

  “Why would there be anything in the library about it? Everyone knows already.” Faida shrugs.

  This raises some big questions. Are these stars actual stars in the shape of these symbols, or just projections in the sky? If the former, that really says something about the strength of gods to be able to casually keep something of that mass in a specific shape.

  Is it the same way in Odwia, or hell? Or is it just here? If it is just here, why is this place different?

  And if it’s not just here, why is Earth different?

  “I think I need to build a telescope.” I mutter.

  As Gerald heads back to the academy, one of Faida’s flying guards lands and takes out a small book. They twist a gem on the cover about ninety degrees to the right, causing it to start blinking softly. By the shine of a simple light spell, they open the book and flip to an empty page, quickly writing in the date and time after referring to a magic tool from their pocket.

  ‘Your grace, I wish to make a report.’

  After writing the simple line under the date, they don’t have to wait for long before more writing starts to appear on the page, as if written by an unseen hand.

  ‘Is Faida alright?’ Reads the reply.

  The guard sighs slightly. Had anything nefarious actually happened to their young ward, they would have begun their communication in an entirely different manner. They wouldn’t say that, however, and thus write, ‘Yes, your grace. The young lady is unharmed and in no danger. This report is of a different nature.’

  ‘Very good. Continue.’

  ‘The young lady spent this evening, as I have previously reported she is wont to do, at the peak of a mountain nearby the academy. Shortly before sunset, someone ascended the mountain and joined her at the peak. I thought I should report this because it had occurred once before, about half a year ago, and it seems probable that it may become a semi-frequent occurrence. That, and the uniqueness’ They shake their head as they write at the accuracy of the word that can’t be conveyed through simple text, ‘of the individual.’

  ‘Don’t tell me some overzealous Earl’s son is trying to woo my daughter again.’ The frustrated reply comes.

  ‘No, your grace.’ The guard writes, unsurprised by the response. It wasn’t an uncommon occurrence. ‘I mean ‘unique’ in the most literal of senses. The individual is of an unknown species which takes the appearance of - and I do not jest - a table fork.’

  This response takes longer to come than the ones before. ‘They say the worlds are full of strange and amazing things, but this is truly unexpected. What, then, are their intentions for meeting Faida?’

  ‘They say that they are colour-blind, and had just completed a magical tool allowing them to see normally. They wanted to test it by viewing the sunset from a place with a good view. It is plausible, given that the mountain is the closest to the academy.’ The guard accedes. ‘They claim that they wish to return there occasionally to do the same again, which seems like a flimsy excuse to get closer to the young lady. If that was their goal, however, they are going about it in a very odd manner.’

  ‘How so?’

  ‘For the most part, they did exactly as they said, or at least perched on a rock facing the sunset. I didn’t sense them doing anything, excluding feeding mana into the magic tool they made and one they used to talk.’ The guard elaborates. ‘In fact, apart from initially greeting the young lady, they hardly pursued conversation at all. They claimed to not even know the young lady’s name, although if I remember correctly from their last meeting they recognised the young lady as a high elf, and the repercussions thereof.’

  ‘Playing hard to get, perhaps? It would be something novel, at least. What do you know about this individual?’ The unseen respondent asks.

  ‘Not much, my grace. They go by Gerald, no other titles or even a family name that I know of. Hasn’t caused much of a stir at the academy, other than by appearance alone. They move around with some form of levitation. I’m unsure exactly what, except that it isn’t magical.’ The guard details. ‘The only other thing is that both times they met the young lady, I could sense him watching me the whole time. No hostility, just… Watching.’

  ‘I see. I expect a full report of their background and capabilities next week. Otherwise, keep working as you have been - but keep a watchful eye on this Gerald.’

  ‘Understood, your grace.’ With that final message, the guard waits a few seconds just in case something more is written, then closes the book and deactivates the gem on the cover.

  Both they and the recipient of the messages understood the possible implications of Gerald being able to see Faida’s guards and yet interacting with her anyway: It could be that he had no hostile intentions and thus assumed he had nothing to fear from them – or it could be that he didn’t see them as a threat.

  In actuality, it was a bit of a mixture of the two. Gerald, of course, has no reason to act against Faida. In the event that her guards acted against him, however, while he was in no way confident in defeating them, he was at least fairly sure he could flee safely to the academy, where they wouldn’t be able to act.

  Carefully adding another symbol to the formation, I set down the pencil and take a look at the result, thinking. I sigh internally as I realise that it will only complicate making the necessary subformations compatible and go to rub it out when I hear a knock on the door.

  A chair scrapes along the ground as one of my dormmates gets up to open the door.

  “Hey! Is Gerald in?” Comes a familiar voice.

  “Yeah, come in. He’s over at his desk.” He replies.

  “Finally!” Spark zips over before the others, wings a blur as he hovers next to my desk. “Do you know how much time we spent searching the library for you? The heck are you doing here!?”

  “Can’t have been more than twenty minutes, really.” Lamar shrugs as he walks. “Spark’s just impatient.”

  “Hey!” Spark shakes his fist at Lamar. “I’m not impatient, I just want to get going already!”

  Lamar rolls his eyes.

  “Well, we’ve found him now, so it’s all good!” Iueia says happily. “Whatcha workin’ on now? Didn’t you say you already finished your new eye?”

  “I finished the prototype, sure. But it doesn’t have all the features I want to include yet, it was more just to make sure what I was thinking of would work. Even the materials I made it with are kind of cheap and shoddy.” I explain. “Anyway, what’d you guys come find me for? If you want to do something I’m happy to take a break.”

  “Told you he’d come, Spark.” Lamar raises an eyebrow in satisfaction.

  “Well sorry if I thought mister workalot doesn’t know the meaning of the word ‘break’.” Spark shrugs, shaking his head exaggeratedly.

  “Anyway!” Iueia interrupts. “We were thinking of heading into the city for the day, poking around some shops, seeing the sights, that sort of thing. You coming?”

  “Sure, let me just grab a couple things.” I agree simply. “I needed to go there at some point soon anyway.”

  “It won’t take long, will it?” Spark sighs. “We’re going out to have fun, not check out their library!”

  “They have one there?” I ask reflexively. “Never mind. Well, if we don’t end up having spare time for it, I’ll just go back to the city on my own tomorrow. No biggie.”

  “What are we waiting for, then? Let’s go!” Iueia starts pulling us out the door.

  Before long, we’re walking and flying along the road between the academy and the city, at our own pace. For people their age, and in Iueia’s case his size, I’m amazed how little things like this faze them. Maybe it’s just because I grew up in a much more sheltered and domesticated environment, while they grew up running around the countryside and whatnot. Or maybe it’s just magic and levels playing their part.

  “Some of my teachers have said that if we want to be able to do some of the more advanced spells, we’ll need to level up a bit and put some points into intelligence and wisdom.” Spark complains from where he sits on Iueia’s shoulder. “They’re saying getting to level ten or even fifteen would be ideal, but it’ll put such a dent in my savings.”

  “Yeah, same with mine.” Lamar nods. “I’m not too far off that already, though, so it shouldn’t be too bad buying the last few levels.”

  “You can buy levels?” I ask, surprised.

  “Sure.” Lamar shrugs. “Pay some adventurers some cash and they’ll add you to their party, let you get some of the experience from their kills. For higher level adventurers, it’s an easy way to get some extra cash off of weak monsters, because they wouldn’t get experience from them anyway.”

  “Didn’t you say you were starting to get a bit worried about money, Gerald?” Iueia looks at me in worry. “Are you going to have enough to spare?”

  “Yeah, you gonna be alright?” Spark flutters over to me. “I have enough that I could lend you a little if you need it, you know.”

  “Thanks guys, really, but I’ll be fine.” I chuckle. “I’m already over that level.”

  “Wait, what!?” Spark shouts. “Which level? Ten? Fifteen!? Come on, tell us!”

  “Yeah, you have to let us know!” Iueia agrees.

  Lamar doesn’t see anything, but I see him watching with great interest.

  “Fine.” I sigh. “But don’t tell anyone else this, alright?”

  “Of course.” Lamar nods seriously. “It’s not something that you can just let anyone know.”

  “Oobviiiooously!” Spark agrees exaggeratedly. “Now tell us already!”

  “Thirty-three.” I say.

  “Thirty-three!?” Spark shouts in shock. “You’re kidding!”

  “I’m really not. Show Spark level.” I reply.

  Spark pauses for a moment, hovering in the air. “He’s not kidding. How can you possibly have a level that high? You’re not that old – how old are you, even?”

  “Well, I used to help out an adventurer.” I explain. “We got into quite a few wild and dangerous messes. My level is just the result of surviving through them.”

  Lamar shakes his head in amazement. “No wonder you were so calm fighting those bullies back then. I thought you might’ve been faking it, but you didn’t even take them seriously, did you?”

  “If anyone takes duels at the academy seriously, they’re doing them for the wrong reasons. The whole point is to have a safe environment to learn how to fight.” I say simply. “As for those guys, a sick group of goblins could have killed them. How on earth would they scare me?”

  “That’s so cool!” Iueia cries. “Can you tell us about one of your adventures? Please?”

  Lamar nods. “I’d be interested in hearing, too. It’s still a while before we get there.”

  Iueia expresses his agreement as well.

  “Alright, I guess I can.” I think for a second how I should start the story. “I guess I should start with Ferdinand. He’s the adventurer I mentioned. He wasn’t powerful, or special or anything like that. He was just a guy who used to be a farmer who had some bad luck in life. Big heart, though. Kind. Anyway, we were on the road between two cities when I noticed…”

  “And, basically, that’s how I ended up here.” I finish.

  There’s a few moments of silence.

  “Okay, why’d you leave out all the cool bits?” Spark complains.

  “What cool bits?” I reply, confused. “We both nearly died a bunch of times, other people did die, and then I had to abandon him to stop a demonic invasion.”

  “I mean, when you put it that way…” Spark lowers his head. “Sorry.”

  “Don’t worry about it. That’s life.” I say.

  “Looks like we’re nearly there.” Lamar notes.

  “Finally! I can’t wait to see all the amazing things in the city!” Iueia says excitedly, his steps speeding up slightly.

  “By the way…” I start, noting something disconcerting just inside the city gate. “Have you guys ever seen these guys who say stuff like ‘would you like to become one with our lord and saviour?’”

  “Ugh, those guys are creepy.” Spark shudders. “My pops says they’re bad luck.”

  “Not just creepy, they can be really dangerous.” Iueia say seriously. “I heard of a village that kept trying to get rid of them, but a new one came back every time. Then, one day when someone passed through the village, everyone was saying those creepy things.”

  Lamar nods. “I’ve seen a lot of them too, travelling with my dad. I’ve heard stories. A village being sacrificed to some evil god but they left that person untouched, even armies avoiding them in sieges. Why d’you ask?”

  “Well, there’s one inside the gate. I also saw them in Odwia, and in Hell.” I say grimly. “Even demons avoid them.”

  “Even demons?” Lamar winces. “Damn.”

  “Who or what are those things? I always thought that they don’t feel like people. They look like people, they smell like people, but they don’t… don’t act like people, y’know?” Spark muses.

  “Yeah, they always say the same things, stand in the same place all the time…” Iueia agrees. “That’s not normal!”

  The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there.

  The conversation quickly shifts to other topics. Clearly, nobody is comfortable talking about them, a sentiment that seems to be shared by most people judging by how little I’ve noticed it happening.

  Before much longer we’re at the city gate. We pass through fairly simply due to our uniforms. Remembering our earlier conversation, the others look around and quickly notice the man proselytising to passers by.

  Perhaps noticing our gazes, the man turns to face us. “You are too young to join us. Return in a few years if you are interested. As for you…” He tilts his head, considering. “Gerald.”

  I feel a chill. How could he know my name?

  “You cannot become one with us. Still, perhaps we shall have dealings in the future.” He stares at me, unblinking.

  “At the risk of sounding offensive, I hope not.” I reply honestly.

  “We understand. If you change your mind, we are never far away.” He says, and with that, he stops paying attention to us.

  “What’d I tell you?” Spark whispers. “Those guys are creepy.”

  “Agreed.” I say shortly. “Let’s get a move on, shall we?”

  Putting the strange meeting behind us, we explore the city. It holds up to our expectations as the city nearest what is purportedly the greatest academy of magic, with magical lighting and tools everywhere. Stores selling potions to heal, rejuvenate, make the drinker appear younger, increase their strength and many things besides.

  Elementals and the occasional golem work alongside more common races, carrying heavy loads and helping with simple tasks. People show off their skills at magic on every other corner, such a regular sight that rarely a glance is thrown towards those simply juggling fireballs or spitting fire.

  Iueia and Spark watch with excitement people coming and going from the doors of the adventurer’s guild, where the distribution of warriors and mages is practically the reverse of many I had seen elsewhere, with armour and sword being more a rarity than the robe and wand. One of the warriors passing through notices their gazes and, smiling, turns away from them to display the greatsword on his back. Reaching over his shoulder, he touches the hilt, and the blade of the sword is quickly covered by a sheet of ice almost glasslike in its clarity. Mist begins to wreathe the blade, showing that the ice isn’t just for looks before he lets it melt away again.

  “…I want one.” Spark gasps.”

  Lamar facepalms. “You’d be crushed under its weight.”

  “Shut up, I can dream.” Spark retorts.

  With the trio’s youthful energy, flitting from one thing to the next, time quickly flies away from us and we have to leave so we can get back before nightfall. I look up at the ornate temple as we walk by. Tomorrow I’ll return here and ask some questions. I don’t have much specific that I want to know, but if gods have so much influence and power, I need to know more.

  For now, I appreciate the company and watch the sunset as we head back to the academy.

  Novel Discord and