July 3, 491 U.C. - Continued.

The world sat in ancient standard-definition haziness as I opened my eyes. I swear that a bar of black ran through the sky. I poked at the grass, which seemed to be a few large green pixels.

Blinking, the world seemed to sort itself out. The pixels faded. The bar vanished, revealing a tiny pond in the grass. Just beyond it was a shimmering white pool. It rotated; the tiniest trickle of water flowed down to the pool below. I got closer, peering into the white liquid. Then a face rudely popped in front of mine.

With a yelp, I jerked away, tumbling through the soft grass. Sitting up, I scowled at the fairy who’d appeared in front of my face. Her wings were a shimmering silver. They matched her silver hair and golden eyes. She moved closer; her gown swirled as she did.

“Hello?” I asked.

The fairy beamed at me. Her smile was wide. “Hello! I’m Ela. It’s nice to meet you.” She curtsied.

I squinted at her. “Am I dreaming?”

“It’s a vision,” Ela said happily, flitting up to my face again. “You have been selected to become a magical guardian! I’m your familiar. Would you consent to a scan? I can make sure everything went alright.”

“No, thanks,” I replied as I got confirmation. Familiars are how the fae monitor us. I turned and looked around. There was a little sapling near the pool. It reminded me of an aspen tree with its white bark. It almost looked metallic. I walked over to it. The fairy followed.

Ela flitted in front of me, her wings blurring. “Are you sure? I will keep it all fully confidential.”

I dodged around her. “No, thanks. I know that you report to them.”

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“The fae and nobility?” Ela asked. “Of course. But I won’t tell them anything private.”

“What will you tell them?” I asked as I studied the sapling.

Ela giggled. “I’ll get you registered, silly. So they’ll know your name, level, and skills.”

I ignored her and studied the silvery sapling. Its leaves glistened in the light of the pool.

Ela landed lightly on it and frowned up at me. “Are you sure that you don’t want a scan? I could help you with your spell. I can monitor your health too.”

I sighed. “You are not allowed to report my name, appearance, or anything about me!”

Ela scowled. “Why not? That seems very suspicious.” She flew right up to my face and gave her best smile. “You can trust me.”

I stuck my tongue out at her. “Those are the rules. Buzz off if it’s a problem.” I took a seat next to the sapling.

“Okay. Let me know if you want help.” The fairy landed in front of me and took a seat.

I reached over and gently touched the tree. With that act, words came to my mind.

Tier 1

User Time Dilation

- User experiences 4 seconds for 1 earth second.

- Costs 1 mana per earth second.

“What does that mean?” I asked.

“That’s your spell,” Ela admitted.

“So, I can find out everything? Cool.” With a grin, I stood and poked the tiny pool.

Mana: 8/12

Regeneration Rate: .16 per minute.

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Smiling, I gently removed my fingers from the pool and glanced around my little meadow. Spotting nothing else of note, I returned to my sapling and sat down near Ela. “Why a fairy? Seems a little six-year-old girl.”

“We’ve had the best reaction from more sentient forms,” Ela replied. “Though I can switch if you want me to.”

“Can you take the form of a pie?” I asked with a giggle.

Ela facepalmed. “No. I’m not going to look like pie! Do you want me to contact the guardians for you? I can.” She rubbed her brow.

“Nope. No names. Nothing.”

Ela groaned, huffed, and fell onto the grass. “Why?”

“The guardians are corrupt. So are the fae. They are taking over and changing us. Someday, we’ll restore humanity to what it used to be. We’ve fallen so far.”

“Who is corrupt?” Ela asked, crossing her arms. “I’ll report them.”

I smirked at her. “Nice try, little narc.”

“Narc? What’s a narc?”

“Nothing.” I rolled my eyes. “Just keep it quiet.”

“Fine. But it’s not very nice. And you didn’t even see what you’ll look like as a magic girl.” Ela huffed. “What a terrible day! I was supposed to be meeting a new magic girl that I could be proud of. Instead -”

“What do I look like?” I interrupted.

Ela frowned and went quiet. She thought about something before finally standing up. “I guess I can help, but it’s sort of against the rules.” She held out a mirror.

I saw long pointy ears, shimmering platinum hair, and a face that looked very fae. My nose was small, too small. My canines were sharper. My eyes looked like little golden suns. And my body was tall and lithe. What little humanity I may have had was completely gone, altered so I’d become some fae knockoff. Then I frowned further as I made a connection with my appearance. I looked like the worst fae of the lot.

Ela’s eyes went wide. “You remind me of -”

“No!” I interrupted. “I don’t. Don’t even say it. And don’t you dare tell her.” I lay on the grass.

“Why not?” Ela asked.

“Because those are the rules. I know that you can only report if I agree. I don’t agree.”

“Fine, but criminal activities will be flagged. Those are the rules.” Ela landed on my stomach.

“My magic will stop you.”

“Your magic will stop anything that isn’t monitored or reported.” Ela stuck out her tongue.

“Good enough.” I closed my eyes again.

“Why don’t you want her to know?” Ela asked. “She’ll like you. I’m sure of it.”

“Because the nobility are corrupt. And the fae are turning us into them. Look at me! My mom probably figured that out; that’s why they killed her. We have to stop it.”

“If you let me report -”

I shook my head and frowned. “No. That isn’t happening. Stop asking. Let me sleep. This hurts.” I closed my eyes.

“That’s your body changing. Your magic will need to make a few changes. She’d hug you. Can I hug you?”

I was tempted and contemplated it. Then two arms reached around me and pulled me into a hug. “You aren’t real,” I murmured.

“Or maybe, just maybe, I am,” a voice replied.

A shudder rolled through me as I looked up to see a fae woman who looked like an older version of myself. I pulled away with a look of horror. “Stop,” I murmured, pulling my knees to my chest.

Ela shifted back. “Sorry. She would do it if she knew. Know that.” She pulled up a leaf and laid on it. “Let me know if you want to talk.”

I took several minutes to calm down. I don’t know why she picked Eluna for her inspiration, but it was unsettling; after all, Eluna is the one who killed my mom.

Wiping away the water from my eyes, I looked at the little fairy. “Is there a way to see you or know more in the real world?”

“Would you like access to visual displays?” Ela asked. “I could make a custom agreement.”

“What agreement?”

“I get to choose what to display. I will not lie to you, but I may refuse.”

“Nothing else?” I asked.

“Nothing else. Your magic would stop that. It does mean that I can look at your things here like you did.”

“But you can’t share them!” I emphasized.

“Right.”

“Deal.”

Ela emerged from her leaf and flitted forward with a smile. “There is a catch. You need a compatible display, have to meditate, or you have to summon me. Most use ocular computers that are enchanted.”

“I’ll do that. And what else can you tell me?” I asked.

“No way, Miss Secrets! I’ve already shared way too much.” The fairy curled up next to me.

“I heard the glasses use a combination of magic and tech. How does that work? Can you show it to me?”

Ela stuck out her tongue. “Access request sent!”

“What?” I asked as realization smashed into me. “You can’t do that! I forbade it!”

“You requested access. I was following your orders, Miss…”

“No! No names! At least your rotten request won’t have a name.” I had seriously underestimated her trickery.

“I could get you access. All I need is a name.” Ela batted her eyes.

“Stop asking that! I forbade it.”

“Then stop trying to get me to tell you things.”

“I can pull your wings off!” I replied with a frown.

“Try me!”

I snatched at the fairy. My hands just went through her. “Aw.”

“This is a vision. You can’t rip my wings off. Just for that, you lose one reputation!” Ela wagged a finger at me.

“Make it a dozen!” I retorted with an eye roll.

“Thank you for authorizing the use of reputation!” Ela said happily. She began cheering for herself.

My mouth dropped and then twisted into a scowl. “You tricked me!”

“You told me to do it.” Ela continued her dance, displaying her grace and rubbing salt in the wound.

“That is not fair at all. You aren’t allowed!” I protested.

“Too late. You authorized it, Miss Platinum?”

“No! That is not my name! And you don’t have permission to use it if you figure it out!”

“We shall see.” The fairy giggled. She landed.

I didn’t want to risk another trick by the crafty fairy. My eyelids drooped. Then I peeked as I felt something. Looking down, the little fairy was curled up in my hand. “Are you alive?”

“I can’t answer that,” the little fairy replied.

“Can you promise not to trick me?” I asked.

“Yes, but there is a condition.”

“What is it?”

“You have to keep your reputation above zero.”

“But I’m at negative twelve!” I let out a long sigh.

“Yep. So, you’d need to get that back. I won’t lie about your reputation. If you are above zero reputation, I won’t try to trick you. That’s the deal.”

“Deal. How do I get reputation?” I laid my head on the soft grass.

“You get it through quests or just when I feel like it.”

“Calling me something doesn’t count as consent, right?” I asked.

“You’re at negative. I’m not giving you any hints. Next time, I trick you.” Ela giggled again.

Leaning back, my eyes slowly drifted shut while I contemplated my new familiar. She’s been a tricky one from the start; don’t let her tell you otherwise.