“Can you tell me more about Greg, Jack?” whispered Lyla while leaning her body. Right now, both of them agreed to keep watch on Greg, just in case. Greg’s sleep looks so peaceful that his mark on his forehead looked like ordinary fallen hair. They sat facing the bedridden Greg while talking quietly.
Lyla seemed curious enough after that bathroom incident. She always was, especially about Jack and Greg, but never outright asking them.
Jack guessed that because Lyla is what Greg’s always named ‘City Girls’, that had some kind of rules about ‘asking something personal to a stranger’ was considered very rude. That kind of rule was so strange to him and Greg that grew up in the Isle.
“Sure, but it's better if we have a drink and snacks.” Her eyes seemed to light up after he mentioned snacks.
After everything was set up, Jack began talking.
“In every rainy season, there is always a surge of tourists in our hometown. Oh, if you didn’t know, our hometown name was Calsmonport.” Jack's eyes become distant and full of fondness.
“Hah! I miss that shitty port. Hey Greg, do you believe that?” Jack suddenly stopped whispering anymore and started laughing, Lyla so startled that she became annoyed. Without missing a beat, Jack continues.
“Calsmonport was a port-type town in one of the Nine Crowns Isles. Apart from being famous as one of the major passages to the Ancient Crowns Tower, it was also the third largest port and one of the Isle with the most unique natural concentration phenomenon compared to other nine Crowns.
Calsmonport in every late rainy season, would spark some phenomenon that the locals proffer being called as an Auva’ar; from the oldest phrase that basically means ‘another plane’. The local flora and fauna in some parts of the Isle would be…different. One major aspect is their colors. From the dominant brown or green into white and yellow-ish hue. And it's so gorgeous that it's just like seeing entirely another plane. So with that kind of phenomena, it became so attractive that every visitor from around the world thought it was the Tower’s deed. Of course no one knows, even us the locals.” Taking a sip, Jack changed positions, after finding the best spot he relaxed.
“That is why in every period of the year, rainy seasons are always welcomed in our hometown; even though it always makes people sick, regularly. Because the locals could get some extra income from the fluctuating visitors, that chance for some people is a Godmother-sended miracle.” Jack tones suddenly become serious.
“But there is a catch. it always was.” Lyla just nodded, waiting, bracing for something terrible.
“One of the minor setbacks with such overwhelmingly positive results is that, sometimes, bad things happen. Like vandalism and crime, nothing much. But the major setback was if there were an ex-Delvers among the visitors, although it's rare.
As us locals know, an ex-Delvers was like an Arcane-class artifact, which means compared to average people was like comparing dirt and skies. Thus, if you somehow became the chosen by or found an Arcane-class artifact, then your Fate sealed. Because if you couldn’t handle its Path, the only way was, you’ll be the host for it until the next handler arrives, it basically means you'll be half-dead, better be dead rather than trapped in your own body, right? But on the contrary, if you could handle it, then at the end of your journey, you’ll become Sentinel-class actors. Sentinel-class actors based on my limited knowledge were classified as an equal for one kingdom. That basically means one person could’ve wealth and military might of a kingdom.
Sometimes I wonder what kind of fish that sentinel guy eats. Heh, surely not Bog fish. Hah!” Jack laughs with his own joke.
“Oh where was I? Oh yeah. So, what I meant to say was that if some random ex-Delvers could make us locals wealthy for a dozen generations, but the stake was very high that Pete–he’s our huntsman that crazed about fishing; called it cursed treasure. I thought the same too.
The major reason was that the majority of the ex-Delver was ...unpredictable. Not like some ex-Adventurers that just can be rough sometimes.
In fact, those ex-Delver could makes that ‘rough’ bars into entirely another levels, isn’t that scary?” Jack abruptly stopped talking and taking a deep breath. Lyla just let Jack take a breather without answering. Because she kinda knows what the implication of Jack’s story means, but at the same time she can’t answer his question, simply because she had never been in Jack's position. With the silence before them, she peek at Jack’s expression. He look so conflicted until his gaze falls into Greg’s face, then his posture softened.
“Lyla,”
“Yeah?”
“Ever heard of Akasha’s Syndrome?” he asked. Gaze still lingering around Greg. Lyla tried to remember if she ever heard of that Syndrome before, until she gave up and shook her head.
“Never heard...” whispered Lyla, sensing the gloomy atmosphere.
“Then, let me tell you something, In some cases, the unfortunate guides or as we preferred called victims mostly struggled to get back to their former life after such an encounter. Calsmonport people are tough folk you know, even the lasses. And not just about the weather and the sea, even the Auva’ar is considered dangerous.” Jack stopped talking again, but this time Lyla couldn’t hold her curiosity out of politeness, anymore.
“Why? What do these ex-Delvers do to their guides? Isn’t...isn’t there a guardsman or authority that the people could file a report to?” She forced herself to ask. Afraid of what might be the answer.
This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.
“Of course there is one. But then, what could they even possibly do? Even though these ex-Delvers could bring harm to us, they choose not to. I think these lot’s not bad, but they just, what’s that Greg word was? In-tune? In-door? Nah that’s weird, what was, oh! Yeah, it's in-tense. Yup that’s the word. They're just ...intense.
Anyway in this case, no, they didn’t do anything to the guides. More accurately, its some kind of side effect of too much being around the ex-Delvers just like seeing the Sun's too much, it will bring that kind of harm; the rumors said that it was about the information they shouldn’t be spoken about. That specifically related to the Towers, so all that info could affect normal people or outright dangerous for other non-Delvers. You know, as the saying goes, knowledge is power.
But, in our case, that’s just rumors. The actual reason why it's poor to be around them for too long was what Greg’s called aura’s. If you asked him, he would tell you exactly what that means.“ Jack paused for a while. He seems so weary now. He finished his drink in one gulp. Lyla began talking.
“..uh, you know, it's okay Jack if you don’t want to share the story. You look so lost that it makes me so guilty. You can tell me something else about Greg’s or we could —what? Is…Is there something in my face?” how Jack sees her now seems like she has grown a horn in the head.
“No, just.. never mind.”
‘Greg. You foul rotten salted clam! Why are you always damn right! Shit. I’ve lost another bet. Jack murmured to himself.
“Excuse me? What part of Greg was ...salted?” Lyla is uncertain, because she just caught the ‘Greg and salted’ part from his murmur. Jack snapback.
“What? No! Let's get back to the story, m‘kay?” grimacing while Jack said the last part. And Lyla easily agreed.
“So, where was I?”
“Uh, the aura?”
“Ah! yes. That. Well,” Jack became weary again, perhaps remembering the past. With a grim face he forced himself to talk.
“Lyla, that case I was talking about? One of the victims was Greg’s mothers.” Jack exhaled, the bitter memory soon seems flowing into his next words. Lyla was stunned.
“Just once she had met an ex-Delver. The ex-Delver was like any ordinary midwife in every part of the town; not too tall, grey haired lady, slightly wrinkled and exceptionally polite. That’s the reason why Greg’s mother accepted to be her tour guide, despite already knowing that the lady was not some random midwife.
One thing that makes her so distinctive; in Greg’s mother stories was how she felt like reality was warping around her every movement. So gorgeous and terrifying at the same time, she once said. In the first and second days, Greg’s mother tried her best to get used to that wrongness. Not thinking much about the lady. In short, after one week of meeting and mingling, Greg’s mother already sensed something had changed in hers. But she never finds out until later after she gives birth to Greg.
That ‘change’ was apparently how she could perceive herself in two places at the same time, which later would be revealed as Akasha’s Syndrome which means the patient could experience viewing one self in and from different dimensions at the same time. That’s resulting in how she could see herself from another ‘side’. Its difficult to understand that. And that always made her confused at everything and anything. Just like easily dazed by doing something.
Because Greg’s father was away at that time, his mother just considered it as an after-birth effect because she felt like a normal migraine. Oh but how wrong she was. Greg’s mothers name is…Leira, she was a wonderful mothers even to all Greg’s friends.” Jack's eyes become watered after saying her name.
“She ...would do anything it takes to have another normal day with her people. She’s so silly sometimes. Her laugh was so pleasant and intoxicating that even this man, one of the tourists, wanted her to become his second wife, and he asked in front of the folk. Even Pete is there, watching. Some reputable merchant, they said. Hah! Do you know what she said to him that time? She said: oh my, thank you sire. That’s the most beautiful compliment my Husband could ever dream of! Perhaps, sire should also be my second too? Wonderful! Will ‘second husband’ suffice? I shall make sure we have dinner together. Just the three of us! and she do what Pete called ‘killing blow’, she winked.” Jack began laughing, then forced to stop until he could deliver the best part
“But the more hilarious part was when she called Greg and asked him to call the man his second father, and with the innocent face of an imp, he called the man sether, second-father, the man just stood there with a mouth like a fish. Exactly like you now! Ha!” Jack’s guffawed so hard he knocked his glass into the floor, luckily the glass was empty.
Lyla was having so much difficulty following Jack's story that she ended up like a fish.
“How dare you call me an imp, you imp!”
Both Jack and Lyla froze.
“Ha! Hey, want to watch both iced fish in my room, guys?” Greg said theatrically and started laughing from behind Lyla and Jack, from the direction of the opened door. As if Greg could wake up, pass them and go outside while picking up a fallen glass and holding Jack’s actual fallen glass while him and Lyla didn't even see Greg twitching while he was bedridden.
The most important thing right now is,
“Greg, what in the Godmother’s name are you doing? When did you even wake up?!”
“What? Just now. Why?”
“How come we don’t see you getting out of bed?! We sit directly facing you!” Lyla snapped, perplexed by Greg’s casualness.
Greg was puzzled at first, stupefied by their reactions, as if just now realizing why he can go to the bathroom and pick up a fallen glass in front of Jack and walk into their back–intending to make them startled, which succeeds; but that's not the point. He can do all that while Jack and Lyla are just like motionless statues. Somehow in Greg’s perception that moment was normal. As if because he wished it, it could happen. no matter how absurd.
“Huh, now that I think more about it, you’re right Lyla. Am I moving so fast that you guys can’t even see me or am I going crazy?”
Then the three of them stood still, watching one another. Especially Jack and Lyla, expecting Greg to pull another trck or whatever that thing Greg’s doing. Until there was growling noise, and Greg’s said:
“Well, lunch time everyone! Be prepared to meet Old Billy’s most horrendous scandal’s he unleash onto the world! His food.” Greg’s final words made Jack break his watch and start chuckling, then soon they all began to laugh. Pretending that strange moments never happened. Jack and Lyla were sure Greg would share his thoughts later. And Lyla will make sure Greg does not forget that.