Turns out there wasn’t as much of ‘evening the playing field’ as ‘Alex standing around while Kent Smith somehow breaks into Birgit’s room.’ He didn’t exactly tell me how he did it, other than telling me that being a reporter, he had to find creative ways around locked doors a lot of times.

“Everything we wanted to give you should be here,” I said once we were in.

The room was a little messy, but thankfully that was restricted mostly to Birgit’s roommate’s side. Everything around Birgit’s bed and wardrobe was tidy. I went straight for her bedside table and, sure enough, both sketches were there.

They weren’t rough or anything though. They weren’t exact–not that I blamed her considering the circumstances–but they were close enough. And the journal was there as well.

Countless retellings of my recurring nightmares, and even the ones that weren’t recurring. Just looking at them I felt my heart beat faster. They weren’t-they weren’t real. But Paragon was.

So what if they were too?

A large hand rested itself on my shoulder. Kent Smith. He was a surprisingly reassuring presence.

“What do we do now?” I asked him, speaking quietly. I handed him everything and he had a small smile on his face.

“You handled this better than most, you know.” He sounded sincere, but I didn’t exactly find that reassuring. “Now, I think you should go to the dean.”

“Shouldn’t I call Sofie? She-”

“He’ll be at Poseidon’s Pool,” he said confidently. “It’s a Billiards place. Do not–and I emphasise the not–believe a word he says. Charles Morris will always know more than he lets on, and he will always keep the most important thing he can from you. Be careful.”

“Alright.”

“I’ll get your friend and Sofia. Now go! Poseidon’s is the first building you see if you go full on ahead from the gate.

And so I did. To be honest, I didn’t exactly know how to go about this. If Morris was half as knowledgeable as Smith said, then I was done for. Playful insults between friends was one thing, but I didn’t exactly trust myself in a battle of wits between myself and the dean of Atlantis.

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The pool place was pretty close actually, not quite in the city, but close. Hell, I was surprised I didn’t notice it when I was coming over. There were about six tables inside, but none was occupied. The only people inside were sitting at the bar that was on the right side. A bald bearded man in a wheelchair–Professor Morris–was drinking what I assumed to be whiskey, while talking to a barwoman.

I sat next to him, interrupting their conversation. The barwoman, who had dark skin and hair, said something in a language I didn’t understand, and the professor nodded at her. She went in the back, leaving us alone in the empty room.

“Do you know how many strings I had to pull to empty this place?” He chuckled slightly, taking a sip from his glass. “If I weren’t your dean I’d offer you one. But, let’s get straight to business. Birgit fought valiantly, but five against one is bad odds for anyone.”

I slammed my fists on the table. “Let her go. Now!”

“Of course,” he said somberly. “The world is at a delicate balance. I don’t want to jeopardise it by harming Lady Flame’s daughter. She doesn’t have anything to do with this after all. You are the reason she’s involved, am I wrong?”

I clenched my hands. He wasn’t wrong. Birgit would have been a normal student here if not for me. Well, she would be anything but normal even if not for me. She would excel, as she had already, and not have to worry about my nonsense.

“Tell me about Jacob and Paragon.” I looked at him. “The truth.”

“Sofie told you all you need to know,” he said. Bitterly. I hadn’t done it on purpose but this question got to him.

“I’ll give you Sofia. Birgit for Sofia, how about that?”

“I don’t want anything from you,” he said, taking another sip. “I only want to help. I can wipe this whole thing from history. Give me the okay and come tomorrow, Birgit’ll be back to her dorm and you will be a stranger to her. So will your little friend, Ivan, and everyone else. You’ll continue on, living your life like normal.”

I hated myself. There were many reasons for that, depending on the day, but today had a simple explanation behind it. I was considering it. I knew he could do it. He’d done for Jacob, and I hadn’t known for eighteen years.

I took a deep, agonising breath. It felt like the air itself was different, and I couldn’t take it in properly. Almost like when I had asthma, but not quite.

Jacob Macquoid. Paragon. Everything. How could I forget about it? Kent Smith was relying on me, how could I do something so selfish? How could I completely change the lives of so many people all on a whim?

“I can’t do it. Anything else but that. I can’t-”

“-make the decision for so many people.” he was smiling at me. He didn’t look nervous or worried. If anything he looked so happy that you’d swear this was what he expected to hear. “You’re more like Jacob than you know. There are other deals to be made of course. I want you to come to my office first thing in the morning tomorrow. We’ll talk about everything then.”

He extended his hand to me and, in spite of everything inside me screaming not to do it, I took it.