-That is definitely riveting… - she said after a brief stunned pause. - But what can we do then?

-You? Not much - I shrugged. - We? Maybe something.

-You are being vague again…

-Not on purpose… - I smiled. - It’s just, I am not sure what I am going to do.

-Not sure? You said you have a plan!

-And I do, but having one and knowing the effects are two different things.

-So more like you’re going to experiment.

-Somewhat - I agreed. - I can’t deny that.

I am not sure if she was disappointed or just still stunned by the whole idea of her old-dead and forgotten predecessor and me trying to fiddle with them.

-Okay. So what do you intend on doing?

-That is a good question. See, you gave me an idea.

-I did?

-Yes. I told you, while you used that spell of yours that was supposed to refresh your memory, you used the crystal to enhance it.

-Supposedly, according to you - she nodded. - I still am not sure if that was the case though…

-I am not sure either, that’s why I said I think. But back to topic, since you managed to connect with it, why wouldn’t I be able to do the same?

-You want to cast something using this? - she pointed to the room. - How would that help?

-I want to jolt it awake.

She stopped, considering what I said.

-So wait… you think that’s going to help?

-Only if the current theory is the case - I agreed. - It can just be the case of me talking shit and assuming too much.

-Not very assuring.

-But that’s basically not possible - I smiled. - Between all the brains we share and the information from you… I am almost certain that I am correct.

The mentioning of “shared brains” definitely made her wince.

-Yeah… okay. Sure. But you also said that you attempted doing it once. And it didn’t go that well - she pointed out.

-True. But that was before I knew exactly what I was dealing with. Now… I have an idea what to do.

She rolled her eyes.

-Okay. Let’s say that I agree. What am I supposed to do then?

-You? Not much. You have to keep an eye on Kon. And maybe me. Mostly on him though. Right now, I am able to see through his eyes - I said. - It would be a problem if something were to happen and I would’ve failed to notice.

-You’re so omnipotent and yet can’t take care of a singular person?

-Where did you get the idea of me being omnipotent? - I asked, not hiding my annoyance. - I am just a regular person.

-With infinite mana. That doesn’t need to breathe. That can live without food, water, or sleep. Yep, completely normal person.

-...

-From my perspective, you are essentially a god.

-I had enough of the religion talk already, thank you - I shuddered, remembering the Lost Church.

-I am just making an observation. I do not intend to worship you, just for you to know.

-I never said I expected that - I replied, getting more and more annoyed. - Now, if you would, can I finally get started?

-Started on what? You never explained that. Neither what I am supposed to be watching for.

-I was getting to that.

-In Kon, you are supposed to look for a glow.

-Glow?

-Just like in my case, he is part crystal. While he might not be completely converted, he still is able to soak in mana just like me. But unlike me, he’s got a bit less… capacity. Or resistance.

-Resistance for what? To overcharge?

-Yep. If you see him glowing, you need to somehow tell me.

-So just tell you? - she was not very enthusiastic about the seemingly mundane task that I presented to her.

-If that works, sure. But it might be harder than that.

She gazed at me, not understanding.

-Eh… I am about to try and communicate with your “founder”. You think that in the middle of that weird connection a random yell would be enough to interrupt me, or just even grab my attention?

-So what am I supposed to do?!

-Get creative - I shrugged. - But if all else fails, you can just toss a spell at me.

-Are you kidding me?!

-Don’t worry, you can, I am not going to try and pull a fast one - I said, pointing to her neck. - I already told you that I don’t intend on using this.

She didn’t seem that convinced, but nodded nonetheless.

-Er… what about me though?

It was Kon. Till now he was quiet, just listening. In the back of my mind I could tell that he was still a bit distracted, but this time not because of me. It felt like he was in contact with Iloa of all people, and the two of them were discussing something.

-You are to do the same thing. Just keep track of me and yourself. Or… you know what? Don’t think about me, keep an eye on For.

-On me? Do you…

-Just make sure she is not getting drunk on mana - I said before she was to finish her complaining. - I already had to deal with that once, I don’t need to do it again.

-I told you that I can control myself!

-Good. Then I don’t have to worry about anything. You ready?

Both of them nodded, yet I could tell that neither was sure about that. I couldn’t really fix that problem, so I just took a deep breath and entered the chamber.

-Here we go.

The inside was as bright as I remembered it before. I immediately attempted to shut off my sight, focusing on the shared senses from Kon. As it was not the first time I’ve done that, it was easier and I quickly was able to get used to the weird perspective. He was shadowing me about three steps behind, carefully watching our surroundings.

I approached the crystal in the middle of the room. It was glowing, slowly flickering with different colors: purple, white, red, pink…

Even without touching I was able to tell that there was something inside it: be it just mana or something more, it was definitely right in front of me.

-Are you sure you want to do that? - asked Iloa, also not sure about the whole idea.

-Of course. You know very well that I am not going to pass this kind of opportunity. And I know that you neither.

She did not reply, but I was able to clearly feel that she was absolutely curious, too.

-Just don’t kill us.

-Don’t worry. And besides, if something was to go wrong, I would be the one taking the brunt of the impact. In the worst case, you can just take over like before, right?

-Yes… but that does not mean I want to…

-Come on, you’ll have the body for yourself then. What’s not to be happy about?

-The fact that I am going to lose yet another one important to me?! - she replied with a pretty sour expression, I could tell, even without her having a face.

I smiled.

-Wish me luck.

And I put my hand on the crystal.

The reaction was immediate and pretty much the same as before. I felt the surge of mana flow through me, but this time I was prepared for it, and attempted controlling it.

It was harder than it sounds. While I was trying to do a similar thing to the feat I performed on Kon, this time the circumstances were a bit different.

First of all, I didn’t know the name of the person, if any was even there. Even if I was somehow able to communicate with them, the barely active crystal was telling me that my answer would be either delayed or not coming at all.

I was anticipating that, so we already prepared the alternative spell for the situation.

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-Zyza, svury gy xye oryqa nom quxe kyr ur gy xye zoda. Vuzury op zy quq, ur po raqa hu Qav, qy avharow op zy xyomr.

-Pequa, svury gy xye oryqa nom quxe kyr ur gy xye zoda. Vuzury op zy quq, ur po raqa hu Ypqo, qy avharow op zy xyomr.

Again, just like with Kon, we divided our attentions at two different pieces of the spell, repeating them like a mantra.

While not knowing the name was making the spell in itself risky, we chose to do it anyway. If we were to focus enough, it probably would be fine, right?

Besides that, there was another problem: a lack of a free body.

Just as I mentioned before, this kind of spell, or ritual, however you want to call it, needed some kind of vessel to be filled. In Kon’s case it was not an issue. But now, we just had a crystal in front of us, and that is what I intended on using.

According to For’s story, the actual body of the person has been turned into the base for the island itself. While this kind of ritual was not made for it, there was a good possibility that it would essentially just return the person in question to their own body. And, since it was now a whole island, what would happen would just be them returning to consciousness.

That was of course just my and Iloa’s idea of trying to bring the person in question to a state that would give us at least a way to have a talk, or maybe share some memories.

But what we would get was not exactly what we planned.

At first, everything was going smoothly. Both of us were concentrated and doing absolutely fine. It was even better than when I tried transferring Kon, I wasn’t getting even slightly dizzy. I think it was because this time we started sharing responsibilities from the start, and the mana was flowing not only through me, but also through Iloa, if we can even say that the two of us were a different person.

What was unexpected though was the fact that the mana actually was not splitting two ways, like I anticipated: it actually went three-way.

For some reason, Kon was also connected. While he was not taking the active role in the spell, I could tell that his connection was nice and strong, and was getting stronger by the moment. Probably thanks to our shared senses, a good chunk of mana was also flowing through him.

It was doubly annoying. Besides the fact that his sudden appearance, or rather his presence getting stronger, was distracting, there was the issue of shared senses.

Not only was his presence getting stronger, but also the whole connection got tighter. I was the same with Iloa, but since both of us were focusing on the same thing, it was more helpful than anything.

In Kon’s case though, I was able to clearly tell that he was worried and the emotions along with his thoughts were flooding us, making it harder to concentrate.

Still, it was easier than trying to speak the spell while drunk, so we were able to persevere.

It was all well, until the “help” came.

For, who I told to watch us all, apparently noticed something going wrong. I told her to be wary of a glow, so I assume that was it.

She suddenly approached Kon and grabbed his arms, shaking him wildly. At first, I thought that it was going to be the death of us, because we were sharing senses now.

I was absolutely right, because I almost bit my tongue while speaking. While I managed to correct myself and regain my composure, Iloa was not that lucky.

I can only imagine how she was startled when, without having a body, she felt herself being grabbed and shaken. It definitely had to be a wild sensation.

So wild that she straight up stopped the spell, making me pick up her slack, doubling my duties for at least a few repeats.

-What the! You…

She managed to mutter a few words before she went back to the incantation and again was sharing the load with me.

At first it seemed like nothing changed. I only felt a bit of a surge of power, the bit of loose mana flowing through me. It was nothing I wasn’t able to handle though. It was weaker than the one during Kon’s transfer and didn’t even manage to make me tipsy.

-Ry avharow op zy xyomr, ur po raqa hu Qaw nom Ypqo, zuny!

We finished the incantation.

Immediately I felt strength leave my body and I collapsed right on the spot.

Even considering the experimental fact of the spell, it took more out of me than I would’ve thought. If we mention the fact that I was also using the mana from the blindingly infused environment, it was absolutely unheard of.

Seeing as I collapsed, Kon immediately darted towards me. For was trying to stop him, like I told her, but it was for naught. He was already next to me and was about to try and shake me awake.

I wanted to stop him, but I had no strength. He managed to touch me.

The effect was immediate. The slightest touch was enough for mana to start getting drained from him, jolting me awake and giving me my strength back, enough for me to push him back and sit up.

Kon himself looked a bit shaken, but despite the fact that I just drained some of his mana, he was looking fine.

Wait a second… I was able to see him.

Did that mean that I was able to use that much of mana from the environment and some of mine to boot?

-Iloa, are you alright?

The answer came a bit delayed, but her voice was as strong as always.

-Yes… but what happened? Did we do it?

-What’s going on!? What happened?!

Finally, For’s voice came to me through the ringing that I finally realized existed, and that was deafening me the whole time.

-I think so…?

My voice was unchanged. That was a good sign.

-What did you do? What’s with the crystal?!

Right. The crystal.

I turned my head, gazing towards the middle of the room, and what I saw was definitely not what I thought would be there.

In place of the crystal, or at least where the more pearlescent part of it was just a while ago, was now a large hole. It was definitely larger than the missing crystal itself, although not by much.

What was strange though, it didn’t seem like the hole was made by explosion or anything of that sort. I mean, I would’ve probably noticed a spectacle like that… Although considering the fact that I just almost blacked out, it was possible.

No, the hole was looking like the crystal just disappeared.

-That is a good question… - I finally answered, gazing towards the hole. - What exactly did you two see? Or maybe you For, what did you see?

-Err.. - she was clearly still not okay with me not replying directly, but answered nonetheless - Nothing… I mean, the crystal just disappeared!

-No flash, no sound, nothing?

-You didn’t notice? - she was now positively worried.

-Well, my connection with Kon got interrupted mid-way I think - I said, not sure myself. - So I might have missed something while in a trance…

-You bet you did! There was that blinding light that flashed… it was sort of like a thunderstrike, just for a split second. But there was no sound. Next thing I know the crystal was not there and you were lying on the floor and this one tore himself out of my grasp.

-Yeah, about that - I said, remembering. - I didn’t really think that would be an issue, but apparently he was sharing ALL his senses with me… meaning when you grabbed him you almost broke my concentration.

-Oh! - Kon yelped. Apparently he didn’t know that either. - I am sorry, I just got startled by…

-Nah, don’t worry about that - I dismissed them. - More importantly, do you feel like something changed?

For looked at me, not understanding.

-What do you mean? Weren’t you doing all that to check what’s going on?! Why are you asking me?

-As you well noticed, the disappearance of the crystal was not exactly my plan - I pointed out, standing up.

I realized that, even though just a second ago I was barely able to sit up, now I was back in good shape. Was that thanks to the mana I got from Kon?

-By the way, Kon, do you feel alright? I must’ve drained a lot of mana from you…

I focused on his flame, but to my surprise it was as strong as always.

-I feel fine - he confirmed my observations. - I’ll manage.

-Hm… Well, as long as everybody is ok…

-Not everybody! - reminded me For. - What about my predecessor?! The one who was supposed to be in the crystal that you’ve destroyed?!

-I am not sure, but I might have made a miscalculation…

-Miscalculation!? What’s that supposed to mean?!

She was now clearly on the verge of panic.

-Calm down. Even though we might have made a mistake, it’s not a very grave one… at least it is not going to affect you that much, from what I can see - I quickly assured her. - It might have come with a price, sure, but the effect we got is not far off what we wanted.

-What?

Her mood shifted instantly, from panic to enthusiasm and curiosity. What a range of emotions.

-From what I tell, we have just removed the weak spot of your “security” - I started explaining. - I told you that the crystal was the main piece of it right?

-And it was!

-Not exactly. The whole thing was just essentially… a cork.

-Cork? What the hell?

-You do know that this island was standing right on top of a leyline, right? And a broken one to boot?

-Broken? Isn’t that bad? - asked Kon, worried.

-Not exactly. It can be harmful and irritating, of course, especially for people who are sensitive to mana levels. Or like us, but in this case, the crystal was keeping those issues contained.

-Mhm…

-Your ancestors probably knew about that though, that’s why they made the island in the first place.

-You think that this place was made to contain the mana leak? - asked For.

-That would be most likely, yes. And definitely a better reason to try and sacrifice your own life for the sake of just making an island…

-But since the leyline was broken, wouldn’t that mean that they wouldn’t have to sacrifice their own life? - she was not convinced. - The mana had to be abundant. And it was, you said it yourself.

-There can be more reasons for someone to lose their life than just a lack of mana, you know. For all we know the spell could’ve gone out of control, or they wanted it in the first place.

-Someone would want to make themself a remnant? Even knowing what that would entail?

-And who says that they knew?

She was about to interrupt me, but I already had an idea what she was thinking about.

-No, I am not saying that the person in question was incompetent. Accidents happen, both to the smart and ignorant people. We can’t just assume that your ancestors were either of them.

-Still… to trade their humanity for… that?

-You say humanity… but look at us. We, or at least I, maybe don’t look like one, but I still feel pretty human myself. Nothing much changed, besides some additions. I admit some might be worse than others, but as someone said to me, many people would do a lot to get that kind of power.

She went silent, pondering what she just heard.

-Hm. Maybe you’re right… Then what happened? What did you exactly do to them?

-Yes… about that… - I said, still thinking about what just happened. - While we are considering the ramifications of change into a revenant, I am not even sure that’s what happened to that predecessor of yours any more…

-You what? Wasn’t that your idea in the first place?!

-It was. Doesn’t mean that I have to always be right. And judging by the distinct lack of the response from both the crystal and person in question, I now have another idea of how this all went down… along with my spell.

-Tell us then.

-What I assume is that whoever made this island was indeed a powerful person. But unlike in your stories, they have not turned into the crystal themselves. Just like you pointed out, the mana present here was enough for them to make whatever they desired.

-So what, they did it and just… left? Disappeared without a trace?

-What, you think that’s impossible? - I laughed. - That is definitely one possibility, and most likely to boot.

-Why make the place if you are not going to use it though?

-Don’t you think they did it from their own goodwill? - I replied jokingly

She only replied with a sour face.

-Kidding, kidding. Sure, they could’ve done that, but what they most likely wanted was to create an Origin Crystal.

-To create one? Wasn’t it made along with the island?

-Yes and no - I replied. - Sure it was made from the island itself. But, it is impossible to just spawn an Origin Crystal out of thin air. Not instantly that is.

-So someone just created a place for it to form? - realized Kon, picking up on my train of thought. - They made the castle to protect it, sealed the chamber from the outside world, to create the best environment for it to form?

-Precisely - I nodded, happy that he’s been actually remembering what I told him.

-How do you even get to that conclusion? - said For with disbelief. - Did you get a vision or something?

-Maybe…