“Oh, if it isn’t Theo”.
“Yuven…”
Lynn and Theo had been on their way to material generation class. Just as they were about to reach the classroom, they bumped into Yuven in the corridor.
“I heard the gossip. That you’ve ran into some money troubles as of late”, she said cheerfully.
“Is it really so difficult? To budget according to your circumstances. You really do have no resourcefulness, do you?”
She was trying to provoke Theo with her trademark soft, condescending tone.
“I hear you’re up to your neck in debt. I always thought it would happen to you, sooner or later. You have so, so much pride, yet by nature you’re so clumsy, impolite, unsociable, and bad mannered. I could go on…No matter where you look to, you’ll find no work, and even if you do somehow manage to find someone who will employ you, you’ll be dismissed the very next day. You may think you can be independent, but you’ll be bankrupt before you know it. Just look at how you already flee from your bills and debt. You’re lost, and when you inevitably turn to begging, what people will throw at you won’t just be a small change, but rocks as well. In the end you’ll turn to crime, and your life will see curtains like that- as a criminal. You’ll spend the rest of your days in a tiny cell. How pitiful”.
Lynn listened to her torrent of verbal abuse in shock. His heart was thumping in his chest.
Just to what extent should her talk of such gossip be taken at face value?
As usual, Yuven’s remarks were by and large at odds with reality, and could be countered accurately and easily, but there was one part that was on the money.
They had gone into business together, and their smuggling business was something that carried with it the risk of getting into trouble with the law. It certainly wasn’t out of the realms of possibility that they would be caught.
As of late, Lynn had found himself increasingly over sensitive about the business. He had begun to feel guilty, too, and now he felt that Yuven might even know something- if she did, then it was possible she was trying to provoke Theo, in order to fish for details.
Was she simply trying to get under Theo’s skin, as she had a reputation for enjoying, or did this confrontation in particular have a more cunning angle?
Lynn was careful not to lock eyes with her. He felt that if he were to meet her gaze, something inside him would, through some intangible means, tip her off to their dishonest enterprise.
In short, he was afraid she would see through them.
“Well, it’ll be fine, don’t worry. If you go bust, I’ll buy you up. Actually, lately I’ve been thinking that I want a new slave, you see. At any rate, no matter how many slaves you have, they’re never enough. There’s plenty of work to go round. From carrying staves, to putting on your master’s shoes for them, to cleaning stables, to using buckets to collect water. I’ll put you to work properly, all right. If you make a mistake? That’s one hundred slaps, or whips. When you’re no longer of use, I’d sell you off. I suppose if I’m to be compassionate, I can manage to have your bones buried in your hometown. We come from the same town after all”.
After a moment of perfect silence, Theo burst into hysterical laughter.
“How wonderful, carrying staves and putting on your shoes for you! Just once, maybe, I’d love to do such an easy, comfortable job”, he said, snorting in exasperation through his nose, and entered the classroom.
Lynn tried not to make eye contact with her as he followed Theo into the classroom, hot on his heels.
Yuven simply watched as they walked away, with a slightly confused look on her face.
Just then Lillet, someone from her friendship group, called out to her.
“Yuven, you aren’t bickering with those two boys again, are you?”
“They’re acting strange…”
“What?”
“They’re being suspicious. Theo didn’t even bite, it’s not like him”.
“What’re you talking about?”
“The way he put on airs is evidence that something good happened to him. Perhaps it’s something to do with his wages”.
“But I thought he was slacking off work lately. That’s what people are saying”.
“He didn’t even bite at the mention of the rumours, he must be earning money in some strange, unwieldy way that he can’t mention to anyone”.
“Really, though? Aren’t you reading into it a little too much?”
“No, I know I’m not mistaken. I can tell. And come to think of it, Lynn has been avoiding my attention for a while now. He must know something. Maybe I should try to get some information from him”.
“Lynn? Isn’t that the slave boy? Are you sure you want to be seen talking to him again?” She asked, worryingly.
“I don’t care. Finding out Theo’s little secret is more important to me. I’ll find out whatever it is they’re hiding”.
Yuven stepped through the doorway, into the classroom, as her eyes flashed for a moment with a twinkle of bright light.
Lillet sighed.
She had led a sheltered life, being brought up conservatively, and she was taken aback watching her friend, Yuven, talk to boys so readily. She scowled at the unbecoming behaviour, but at the same time she felt envious.
“Oh, hey Lynn”.
“Hi Shila”, he replied.
He had just finished a class and had been about to bundle himself into the elevator that would take him to the 90th floor, when Shila had spotted him and called out in greeting.
“It feels like it’s been forever, doesn’t it”.
“Y- yeah, right?”
He did his best to play it cool, but his words came out wrong, awkward.
“I would never expect to see you here. Did you read yesterday’s paper?”
“Huh? Actually, no, I haven’t…”
The reason Lynn read the paper at all was to get information about Elios, but news stories about him were rarely published.
When he first arrived at the 100th floor, there was a flurry of stories published on him, but since then news about him had become scarce.
Each time he read the paper, what he checked was who was living on what floor- such information was published in a designated column in the newspaper, which was his sole focus.
At floors 100 and above, a wizard’s rank was the floor and area that they were living at, and this information was published in the papers.
However, ever since Elios had reached floor 110, there had been no new news about him, and at some point Lynn had stopped checking the paper.
Then he had begun assisting Theo in his elevator business, which kept him busy. Lynn found the paper drifting even further from his mind.
“According to yesterday’s paper, Elios was deranked to floor 100. He was on floor 110 for so long, I wonder what happened…”
“What? He was really deranked?”
“Yeah, it certainly seems so. When he reached 110, he stopped replying to my letters too, so I really don’t know what’s going on. Has he been in contact with you at all?”
“No, I haven’t heard a thing”.
“I see… Well, it is Elios after all, so I’m sure he’s fine. Even so, I worry”.
“Yeah, I know… It is a bit worrying. Ah, I actually have something I need to take care of, around here, so…”
He was of course worried about Elios, and would talk to Shila for longer, but right now getting to the secret elevator was the most immediately pressing matter. He had to get there ready for its arrival full of cargo.
Lynn knew that the elevator, sent on its way from Renryll by Theo, should be arriving very soon. He had already been in a rush when he had bumped into Shila, and now he was starting to get anxious.
He moved to turn away from her, but as he did she put a firm hand on his shoulder.
“Hold it right there, mister. Agul and I were thinking of having dinner in Renryll. This is perfect timing, bumping into you like this. You should come too! I’ll treat you. I know you’ve been struggling lately”.
“I- I can’t. I really have an important… Errand…”, he tried to explain.
“An important ‘errand’? That’s the elevator to the 90th floor. What on earth kind of business do you have on the 90th floor?”
“Umm, it’s just a delivery. For work”, he said, hoping desperately that she would buy it.
Instead she gave him a funny look.
“You’re acting strange, Lynn”.
“What? How so?”
“You haven’t been down to Renryll to have lunch in Kitchen Gumorie at all lately”.
“That’s because I’ve only just moved to Allfrid. I’ve been getting settled up here”.
“Your lifestyle doesn’t improve that easily just because your address is in Allfrid now, and it’s not like there’s some kind of special magic you can use that you could market”.
Lynn was at a loss for words. He didn’t know what to say.
This was the thing about Shila- she had a sharp eye, and cunning intuition. Was it possible she was on to him?
“Come to think of it, the cost of living in Allfrid is quite high. Surely you can’t be scraping by just with your part time factory and office jobs. How are you keeping yourself afloat?”
“Well, you see, the thing is…”.
“What? Wait a minute. Are you saying the reason you’ve stopped coming down to Renryll for lunch is because you’ve quit your job at the factory? How on earth are you making ends meet?”.
“I’m being smart with money- budgeting properly, holding down to part time jobs in Allfrid…”
“Come to think of it, I heard that Theo has been giving up hours at the factory. Surely not… Surely he’s meddling on the wrong side of the law? Lynn, don’t tell me you’re in on this too, as his accomplice? Maybe you’ve been sucked in, and now you’re unable to quit?”
Oh shit, what should I do?
He felt his pulse quicken. She was right on the mark.
“My god. That scoundrel! He needs someone to give him a good seeing to. You’re no good, either, listening to whatever he says”.
“Wait, no, Shila, you’ve got it wrong”.
His instinct was to dispel her suspicions through some clever means of verbal trickery, but as soon as he had opened his mouth, no convincing explanation was forthcoming.
As if by perfectly engineered disastrous timing, it was at that moment that Theo appeared, and called out to him.
“Lynn! What are you doing, chit chatting? I need you to stick to the plan”.
“Theo. Just what do you have Lynn involved in here?”
“Huh? Oh, Shila”.
He turned back the way he had come, and attempted to escape a brisk walk”.
“Hey, wait! How can you turn away like that when someone’s trying to talk to you?”
“I’m sorry, I’m just a bit busy right now”, he said, and ran off.
Shila had never been fond of Theo, and Theo reciprocated her feelings in full. Seeing Shila, he had no intention of sticking around. He increased his pace.
“That idiot. What is his problem”.
“Ah, Shila. I’m going to have to be going now, as well”.
“Wait”, she said, and grabbed his shoulder for a second time.
“What are you guys up to? To be frank, you’re both acting suspiciously”.
“We’re not up to anything. Our employer requested that we do some special maintenance, but we’re not at liberty to tell anyone because it’s classified. Sorry I can’t tell you more…”
“What does that mean? Ah, whatever, I don’t care anymore. Besides, there’s something more important!”
She drew near, and leaned in close so that her face was close to his.
“You’re being really cold. Before, you used to come hang out with us, of your own accord, much more often. Lately you’ve barely shown your face. Have you come to hate us, the way Theo does?”
“No, of course note, I would never”.
“Then, tomorrow. You have classes tomorrow, right? Let’s have lunch at the academy cafeteria. Even if you’re busy, lunch shouldn’t be a problem if we have it at the academy, surely. Agul will be there too. We can hang out, long old times. All of this funny business, of not bothering us, it’ll be like water under the bridge. What do you say?”
“Okay, I’ll be there”.
In truth, he knew he would be busy tomorrow too, and he would prefer not to go, but he couldn’t see how he could get out of it.
Moreover, in truth Shila wasn’t the type to interfere with everything he was doing. She simply missed his company, and wanted to spend more time together, the way they used to. Ever since Elios left for the 100th floor, Shila had become more and more lonely. Understanding all this, Lynn found himself unable to refuse her invitation.
The following day, Lynn awoke bleary eyed, and went to the break room in the academy that he had agreed to meet Shila in.
He had been up late the previous night, busy transporting goods via the elevator system.
After entering the room, he looked around, and quickly spotted Agul and Shila. They were already there, and were sitting at one of the tables.
He called out to them.
“Shila, Agul! How are you guys doing?”
Despite his frank, sociable greeting, the two of them didn’t look up at him. They simply remained seated, their eyes cast downard.
Lynn felt that something wasn’t right.
Am I late or something?
He glanced at his wristwatch, but he was right on time.
He cocked his head slightly to the side, puzzled.
“Sorry I’m late,” he said, going with the late hypothesis only for lack of a better explanation, “did I keep you waiting?”
Agul finally looked up at him. His face was pale.
He looked as if he had seen a ghost, Lynn thought to himself, startled.
Shila still hadn’t looked up from the table.
“What happened? Are you ok? You don’t look well”, he asked Agul nervously.
What if they found out about the smuggling business Theo and I have been engaged in lately. Surely they haven’t discovered our elevator…
He felt his heart thumping in his chest.
Nothing could have prepared him for what Agul told him in the next few moments.
“Elios is dead”.
Next time… Chapter 46, ‘That Cold, Sweet Voice’.
“Oh, if it isn’t Theo”.
“Yuven…”
Lynn and Theo had been on their way to material generation class. Just as they were about to reach the classroom, they bumped into Yuven in the corridor.
“I heard the gossip. That you’ve ran into some money troubles as of late”, she said cheerfully.
“Is it really so difficult? To budget according to your circumstances. You really do have no resourcefulness, do you?”
She was trying to provoke Theo with her trademark soft, condescending tone.
“I hear you’re up to your neck in debt. I always thought it would happen to you, sooner or later. You have so, so much pride, yet by nature you’re so clumsy, impolite, unsociable, and bad mannered. I could go on…No matter where you look to, you’ll find no work, and even if you do somehow manage to find someone who will employ you, you’ll be dismissed the very next day. You may think you can be independent, but you’ll be bankrupt before you know it. Just look at how you already flee from your bills and debt. You’re lost, and when you inevitably turn to begging, what people will throw at you won’t just be a small change, but rocks as well. In the end you’ll turn to crime, and your life will see curtains like that- as a criminal. You’ll spend the rest of your days in a tiny cell. How pitiful”.
Lynn listened to her torrent of verbal abuse in shock. His heart was thumping in his chest.
Just to what extent should her talk of such gossip be taken at face value?
As usual, Yuven’s remarks were by and large at odds with reality, and could be countered accurately and easily, but there was one part that was on the money.
They had gone into business together, and their smuggling business was something that carried with it the risk of getting into trouble with the law. It certainly wasn’t out of the realms of possibility that they would be caught.
As of late, Lynn had found himself increasingly over sensitive about the business. He had begun to feel guilty, too, and now he felt that Yuven might even know something- if she did, then it was possible she was trying to provoke Theo, in order to fish for details.
Was she simply trying to get under Theo’s skin, as she had a reputation for enjoying, or did this confrontation in particular have a more cunning angle?
Lynn was careful not to lock eyes with her. He felt that if he were to meet her gaze, something inside him would, through some intangible means, tip her off to their dishonest enterprise.
In short, he was afraid she would see through them.
“Well, it’ll be fine, don’t worry. If you go bust, I’ll buy you up. Actually, lately I’ve been thinking that I want a new slave, you see. At any rate, no matter how many slaves you have, they’re never enough. There’s plenty of work to go round. From carrying staves, to putting on your master’s shoes for them, to cleaning stables, to using buckets to collect water. I’ll put you to work properly, all right. If you make a mistake? That’s one hundred slaps, or whips. When you’re no longer of use, I’d sell you off. I suppose if I’m to be compassionate, I can manage to have your bones buried in your hometown. We come from the same town after all”.
After a moment of perfect silence, Theo burst into hysterical laughter.
“How wonderful, carrying staves and putting on your shoes for you! Just once, maybe, I’d love to do such an easy, comfortable job”, he said, snorting in exasperation through his nose, and entered the classroom.
Lynn tried not to make eye contact with her as he followed Theo into the classroom, hot on his heels.
Yuven simply watched as they walked away, with a slightly confused look on her face.
Just then Lillet, someone from her friendship group, called out to her.
“Yuven, you aren’t bickering with those two boys again, are you?”
“They’re acting strange…”
“What?”
“They’re being suspicious. Theo didn’t even bite, it’s not like him”.
“What’re you talking about?”
“The way he put on airs is evidence that something good happened to him. Perhaps it’s something to do with his wages”.
“But I thought he was slacking off work lately. That’s what people are saying”.
“He didn’t even bite at the mention of the rumours, he must be earning money in some strange, unwieldy way that he can’t mention to anyone”.
“Really, though? Aren’t you reading into it a little too much?”
“No, I know I’m not mistaken. I can tell. And come to think of it, Lynn has been avoiding my attention for a while now. He must know something. Maybe I should try to get some information from him”.
“Lynn? Isn’t that the slave boy? Are you sure you want to be seen talking to him again?” She asked, worryingly.
“I don’t care. Finding out Theo’s little secret is more important to me. I’ll find out whatever it is they’re hiding”.
Yuven stepped through the doorway, into the classroom, as her eyes flashed for a moment with a twinkle of bright light.
Lillet sighed.
She had led a sheltered life, being brought up conservatively, and she was taken aback watching her friend, Yuven, talk to boys so readily. She scowled at the unbecoming behaviour, but at the same time she felt envious.
“Oh, hey Lynn”.
“Hi Shila”, he replied.
He had just finished a class and had been about to bundle himself into the elevator that would take him to the 90th floor, when Shila had spotted him and called out in greeting.
“It feels like it’s been forever, doesn’t it”.
“Y- yeah, right?”
He did his best to play it cool, but his words came out wrong, awkward.
“I would never expect to see you here. Did you read yesterday’s paper?”
“Huh? Actually, no, I haven’t…”
The reason Lynn read the paper at all was to get information about Elios, but news stories about him were rarely published.
When he first arrived at the 100th floor, there was a flurry of stories published on him, but since then news about him had become scarce.
Each time he read the paper, what he checked was who was living on what floor- such information was published in a designated column in the newspaper, which was his sole focus.
At floors 100 and above, a wizard’s rank was the floor and area that they were living at, and this information was published in the papers.
However, ever since Elios had reached floor 110, there had been no new news about him, and at some point Lynn had stopped checking the paper.
Then he had begun assisting Theo in his elevator business, which kept him busy. Lynn found the paper drifting even further from his mind.
“According to yesterday’s paper, Elios was deranked to floor 100. He was on floor 110 for so long, I wonder what happened…”
“What? He was really deranked?”
“Yeah, it certainly seems so. When he reached 110, he stopped replying to my letters too, so I really don’t know what’s going on. Has he been in contact with you at all?”
“No, I haven’t heard a thing”.
“I see… Well, it is Elios after all, so I’m sure he’s fine. Even so, I worry”.
“Yeah, I know… It is a bit worrying. Ah, I actually have something I need to take care of, around here, so…”
He was of course worried about Elios, and would talk to Shila for longer, but right now getting to the secret elevator was the most immediately pressing matter. He had to get there ready for its arrival full of cargo.
Lynn knew that the elevator, sent on its way from Renryll by Theo, should be arriving very soon. He had already been in a rush when he had bumped into Shila, and now he was starting to get anxious.
He moved to turn away from her, but as he did she put a firm hand on his shoulder.
“Hold it right there, mister. Agul and I were thinking of having dinner in Renryll. This is perfect timing, bumping into you like this. You should come too! I’ll treat you. I know you’ve been struggling lately”.
“I- I can’t. I really have an important… Errand…”, he tried to explain.
“An important ‘errand’? That’s the elevator to the 90th floor. What on earth kind of business do you have on the 90th floor?”
“Umm, it’s just a delivery. For work”, he said, hoping desperately that she would buy it.
Instead she gave him a funny look.
“You’re acting strange, Lynn”.
“What? How so?”
“You haven’t been down to Renryll to have lunch in Kitchen Gumorie at all lately”.
“That’s because I’ve only just moved to Allfrid. I’ve been getting settled up here”.
“Your lifestyle doesn’t improve that easily just because your address is in Allfrid now, and it’s not like there’s some kind of special magic you can use that you could market”.
Lynn was at a loss for words. He didn’t know what to say.
This was the thing about Shila- she had a sharp eye, and cunning intuition. Was it possible she was on to him?
“Come to think of it, the cost of living in Allfrid is quite high. Surely you can’t be scraping by just with your part time factory and office jobs. How are you keeping yourself afloat?”
“Well, you see, the thing is…”.
“What? Wait a minute. Are you saying the reason you’ve stopped coming down to Renryll for lunch is because you’ve quit your job at the factory? How on earth are you making ends meet?”.
“I’m being smart with money- budgeting properly, holding down to part time jobs in Allfrid…”
“Come to think of it, I heard that Theo has been giving up hours at the factory. Surely not… Surely he’s meddling on the wrong side of the law? Lynn, don’t tell me you’re in on this too, as his accomplice? Maybe you’ve been sucked in, and now you’re unable to quit?”
Oh shit, what should I do?
He felt his pulse quicken. She was right on the mark.
“My god. That scoundrel! He needs someone to give him a good seeing to. You’re no good, either, listening to whatever he says”.
“Wait, no, Shila, you’ve got it wrong”.
His instinct was to dispel her suspicions through some clever means of verbal trickery, but as soon as he had opened his mouth, no convincing explanation was forthcoming.
As if by perfectly engineered disastrous timing, it was at that moment that Theo appeared, and called out to him.
“Lynn! What are you doing, chit chatting? I need you to stick to the plan”.
“Theo. Just what do you have Lynn involved in here?”
“Huh? Oh, Shila”.
He turned back the way he had come, and attempted to escape a brisk walk”.
“Hey, wait! How can you turn away like that when someone’s trying to talk to you?”
“I’m sorry, I’m just a bit busy right now”, he said, and ran off.
Shila had never been fond of Theo, and Theo reciprocated her feelings in full. Seeing Shila, he had no intention of sticking around. He increased his pace.
“That idiot. What is his problem”.
“Ah, Shila. I’m going to have to be going now, as well”.
“Wait”, she said, and grabbed his shoulder for a second time.
“What are you guys up to? To be frank, you’re both acting suspiciously”.
“We’re not up to anything. Our employer requested that we do some special maintenance, but we’re not at liberty to tell anyone because it’s classified. Sorry I can’t tell you more…”
“What does that mean? Ah, whatever, I don’t care anymore. Besides, there’s something more important!”
She drew near, and leaned in close so that her face was close to his.
“You’re being really cold. Before, you used to come hang out with us, of your own accord, much more often. Lately you’ve barely shown your face. Have you come to hate us, the way Theo does?”
“No, of course note, I would never”.
“Then, tomorrow. You have classes tomorrow, right? Let’s have lunch at the academy cafeteria. Even if you’re busy, lunch shouldn’t be a problem if we have it at the academy, surely. Agul will be there too. We can hang out, long old times. All of this funny business, of not bothering us, it’ll be like water under the bridge. What do you say?”
“Okay, I’ll be there”.
In truth, he knew he would be busy tomorrow too, and he would prefer not to go, but he couldn’t see how he could get out of it.
Moreover, in truth Shila wasn’t the type to interfere with everything he was doing. She simply missed his company, and wanted to spend more time together, the way they used to. Ever since Elios left for the 100th floor, Shila had become more and more lonely. Understanding all this, Lynn found himself unable to refuse her invitation.
The following day, Lynn awoke bleary eyed, and went to the break room in the academy that he had agreed to meet Shila in.
He had been up late the previous night, busy transporting goods via the elevator system.
After entering the room, he looked around, and quickly spotted Agul and Shila. They were already there, and were sitting at one of the tables.
He called out to them.
“Shila, Agul! How are you guys doing?”
Despite his frank, sociable greeting, the two of them didn’t look up at him. They simply remained seated, their eyes cast downard.
Lynn felt that something wasn’t right.
Am I late or something?
He glanced at his wristwatch, but he was right on time.
He cocked his head slightly to the side, puzzled.
“Sorry I’m late,” he said, going with the late hypothesis only for lack of a better explanation, “did I keep you waiting?”
Agul finally looked up at him. His face was pale.
He looked as if he had seen a ghost, Lynn thought to himself, startled.
Shila still hadn’t looked up from the table.
“What happened? Are you ok? You don’t look well”, he asked Agul nervously.
What if they found out about the smuggling business Theo and I have been engaged in lately. Surely they haven’t discovered our elevator…
He felt his heart thumping in his chest.
Nothing could have prepared him for what Agul told him in the next few moments.
“Elios is dead”.
Next time… Chapter 46, ‘That Cold, Sweet Voice’.
