"Everyone lies," Cyrus said in response to the Silver Oracle's accusation.

"Yes," the Silver Oracle said. "But you told Lyda that Rynovar cannot grant affinity for high magics. You know he has."

"Once," Cyrus said. "And it's doubtful he'd ever do it again, even if he'll grant the elemental affinities. The one he granted it to was a special case, and he made them effectively immortal as well. Akin to a god, but not one."

"Indeed," the Silver Oracle responded.

They fell silent, and Cyrus began drinking his tea, draining it despite the heat. He set the glass down.

"Will he grant her wish?" He asked. "I know you shouldn't answer in advance of her asking, but-"

"He will," she answered. "I will do my part for her quest. What will you do, Cyrus?"

"Bring her back to Madam Mara's Restaurant, as promised," he answered. "Then reprimand my brothers again for their antics causing issue for others. Once I drop off the music and video discs, they'll get busy again, so that should take care of them for awhile."

"Cyrus," the Silver Oracle said. "I recommend you guide her on the quest. You are, perhaps, one of four people who aren't guardians of the quest who know the full details of it. How to find each token."

Him and his brothers.

"Why?" He asked. "My brothers-"

"The world can survive without you controlling them," she said. "Have you ever thought that maybe their antics are because they find your reactions amusing and fun? You might not be a masochist, but your brothers? They do have some aspects of it to them."

Cyrus sighed. He knew that his brothers did what they did partly because it annoyed him, but also that they never meant any harm by it. What annoyed him about it was how much trouble it caused for other people.

"Also," she hesitated on the next part. "Have you considered that they might be doing it in an attempt to gain your father's attention?"

"Our mother's told me the same thing," Cyrus admitted. "She said he's intentionally ignoring them because they're doing it out of a desire for fun. They're gods of fun as much as they're gods of time. And if our father does decide to talk to them about it, he better do it when I'm present so I can get him a present."

His tone rose as he spoke, an inevitability when speaking about his father.

"You're still angry at him," the Silver Oracle smiled. "He left you a present."

She reached under her chair and pulled out a book titled How to Pleasure a Partner of Either Sex (Male Edition) and held it out to him. Cyrus's temper flared at his father coming to the Silver Oracle to leave him such a present and the book burst into flames, turning to ash in two seconds.

The Silver Oracle looked at the remains of the book, then reached underneath her seat one more time and pulled out a second copy of the book.

"He left two, just in case you did that," she told Cyrus, who groaned. "I didn't even need to warn him that might happen."

"He's getting more than a punch to the face!" Cyrus angrily took the book from her. "How long ago was he here?"

"He arrived around an hour after you fell asleep after sex with Lyda," she answered. "Proud of how you 'finally grew up and gave in to primal desires'."

"I'm giving the book to the triplets," Cyrus growled. "They probably haven't figured out everything in it yet."

"Maybe not!" She laughed, then turned serious. "I meant it, Cyrus. When it comes to Lyda, I recommend taking her on her quest. Rynovar will not have an issue with it."

Cyrus took a deep breath, then exhaled as he ran his fingers through his hair.

"It would be a break from your brothers as well," the Silver Oracle told him.

"I'm going to get some sleep," Cyrus stood and walked towards the stairs. "Goodbye."

Cyrus made his way upstairs and entered the bathroom to take a shower. After he dried himself off using his magic, he entered the empty spare room and collapsed on the bed, falling asleep immediately. When he woke eight hours later, he sat up and stretched, then pulled on a fresh pair of board shorts before making his way downstairs.

Lyda and the Silver Oracle were eating a breakfast of eggs, rice, and fish with slices of pineapple and mango. Cyrus sat down and joined them for breakfast, speaking none but thinking plenty. If the Silver Oracle suggested that Cyrus accompany Lyda on her quest and guide her on it, then it meant that Rynovar likely wanted to see him.

He noticed that Lyda wore a two-piece swimsuit, blue with silver marks. The Silver Oracle had no doubt given it to her for while she was down there, as wearing the diving gear would be annoying. A wetsuit wasn't the most comfortable of outfits, in Cyrus's opinion, and the belt which helped protect against the pressure and cold of the ocean annoyed him. It was why he taught himself the necessary spells to be able to simply swim down.

"Now then," the Silver Oracle said as she and Lyda moved to the family room, Cyrus moving the dishes to the sink. "You are here for Rynovar's quest, Lyda."

"I am," Lyda responded.

"What would you ask of him," the Silver Oracle asked. "Were you to complete it?"

"To grant me greater power," Lyda answered. "And more affinities."

"Be careful with your wording," the Silver Oracle warned her. "Ask for high affinities and greater magical strength if that is what you want, not greater power. The god who governs us is whimsical, and may twist the request if it's too ambiguous, just for his own amusement."

"Thank you for the advice," Lyda said. "Is that why I am here? To know what to ask?"

Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

"No," the Silver Oracle answered as Cyrus joined them, sitting on an armchair. "But advice is what I grant to those who visit me."

"You receive visitors?" Lyda asked, her surprise obvious on her face. "I'm sorry, I mean, I know Cyrus visits you, but he's strange in the first place – no offense, Cyrus."

"Humans are strange."

"And there's my point," Lyda muttered, before returning to speaking to the Silver Oracle. "But your location… no wonder no one's ever figured out how to find it. Everyone thinks you're a myth."

"The clues are there," the Silver Oracle answered. "And I have been found before. Finding me twice, however, is an uncertain thing. Outside of Cyrus, his father, and Kylnar, I rarely ever receive repeat visitors."

"Lord Kylnar visits?" Lyda asked in shock as Cyrus looked up from his tablet, curious.

"He comes by once every year or two," the Silver Oracle nodded. "To see how I am doing. He came to me before Rynovar found out I was alive, wanting advice on his own reality marble projects. Ever since, he comes to visit just to give me company. I might have plenty in the sea life down here, but there is value in connections with people, even if those people are gods.

"Let us return to the topic of your quest, now," the Silver Oracle said. "Do you know the full details of it?"

"No," Lyda answered. "I know the six requirements, though. Acquire a token found at the bottom of a deep dungeon, speak with the Silver Oracle, complete a challenge issued by a Blessed One, journey into the heart of a sacred forest, impress an elemental, and complete a mystery."

Cyrus laughed at the last challenge, and Lyda's face reddened.

"Okay," she said. "Nothing I found really explained how that's supposed to be done, but I guess there's a way to do it, as some people have supposedly completed it."

"Each of the six challenges," the Silver Oracle explained. "Grant you a token for completing. Before you leave here, I will give you the Silver Token. As long as you have a Token of Rynovar in your possession, you have the possibility of acquiring the Mystery Token. You won't know when it will appear, only that there's is the chance for it. A mystery as to how long you might need to wait. It's possible to acquire it in a day with only one, or fifty years with the other five, but also vice versa."

"Which is why it's a mystery," Cyrus stated.

"Indeed," the Silver Oracle nodded. "It and the Dungeon Token are the most common ones, while the Forest Token is also relatively common."

"No one has ever managed," Lyda said. "To receive a quest from the Blessed Ones, impress an elemental, or find you. They're called the Impossible Trinity."

"Elementals aren't easy to impress by normal people," the Silver Oracle said. "But it's not impossible. As for the Blessed Ones, much like the Mystery Token, the Blessed Token has a prerequisite."

"A prerequisite?" Lyda asked. "And no one's figured it out in over three centuries?"

"Correct," the Silver Oracle smiled.

"It requires," Cyrus said. "Speaking with the Silver Oracle first. She acts as a screening process. She has the ability to see whether or not Rynovar will grant a request or answer a question. If the only thing someone wants is something Rynovar will decline, he'd see it as a waste of his time to let them in. Because of that, he asked Aunt Lena to screen potentials."

"Aunt Lena?" Lyda looked at him in confusion for a moment, then looked at the Silver Oracle. "Your name is Lena?"

"It is," she nodded. "And no, I am not Cyrus's aunt, that is just what he calls me."

"It's easier than saying 'Miss Silver Oracle'," Cyrus commented.

"And the Blessed Ones," the Silver Oracle resumed their conversation. "Will not issue a challenge without approval from me. They will see my letter of recommendation as proof Rynovar will grant your request or answer your question. Once you are ready to leave, I will give you the letter and token."

"I'm ready now," Lyda answered. "Though I doubt I'd be able to make use of them. Not for a long time, anyway. I was only able to come here because Cyrus offered to take me and cover the expenses himself."

"She meant once you're back in your diving gear," Cyrus clarified. "I'll hold onto them until you're putting your normal clothes back on."

"Where are you keeping things?" Lyda asked, realizing he was on his tablet again. "How did you bring the tablet down here?"

"A god has his ways," he answered. "As for the quest, I've decided to take you where you need to go."

"So you have taken my advice, then?" The Silver Oracle asked.

"You suggested he help me?" Lyda asked.

"I did," the Silver Oracle answered. "But while I can suggest, I can do no more than that, especially when it comes to Cyrus. I am a guide, and nothing more."

"We are ready to leave," Cyrus said. "All she needs to do is change."

"He wishes," the Silver Oracle told Lyda. "To get it over with so that he can return to managing his brothers' antics."

"I want to give them the movies."

He also wanted to prevent them from doing whatever they needed twenty million cotton balls for, which required checking on them to learn.

"Let me go changed, then," Lyda said, then returned upstairs.

Cyrus continued using his tablet until she returned, dressed in her diving suit.

"Here is your token," the Silver Oracle handed Lyda a silver token an inch and a quarter in diameter and an eighth of an inch thick. An hourglass design was raised on both sides of it, but was otherwise plain. "And your letter of recommendation."

She handed Lyda an envelope sealed with a dark, blue-green wax. The young woman examined both items, then hand them to Cyrus before turning back to the Silver Oracle.

"Thank you," she said. "And I suppose I should thank you for convincing Cyrus to assist me. I'm not sure how I could pay him back, though."

"I didn't convince him," the Silver Oracle smiled, and Lyda looked at Cyrus, who was stretching, her token and letter gone from sight, as was his tablet. "I merely suggested it. He chose to guide you on his own. And don't worry about payment, Cyrus wouldn't care about such things even if they mattered. To him, he'll consider the journey the price."

"I'm standing right here," Cyrus muttered.

"Of course you are," the Silver Oracle smiled. "You best be off now, if you're planning on leaving in the next few hours. And don't take so long to return next time. I was starting to wonder if you'd decided not to visit me as often."

"I was busy," Cyrus told her. "Goodbye, Aunt Lena."

He turned and left, Lyda following him out. The reality marble was illuminated by a light at the ceiling of it, imitating the sun. Six waterfalls could be seen pouring out of the black, round walls of the reality marble, cascading down into the water below.

There were a total of seven islands in the reality marble, with one at the center and six surrounding it, spaced equally apart and connected by paths of sand, creating a hexagon. The water itself was clear enough that Cyrus knew Lyda likely could not accurately judge the depth. To most, it would appear to be quite shallow, but other than right off the islands, it reached depths of up to fifty feet.

"It's beautiful," Lyda said as they walked from the house to the same island they had entered on.

"She spent hundreds of years working on it," Cyrus said. "Even now, she makes some tweaks to adjust the feel of it."

"I suppose that's her hobby, being as old as she is and interacting with others as rarely as she does."

Cyrus shrugged, leading Lyda through the cave to the gate leading back into the ocean. After she pulled on her mouthpiece and goggles, Cyrus checked them to make sure they were secure, then stepped through the gate and began swimming. Lyda followed him, the pair swimming towards the surface of the ocean.

They broke through beside the boat, which Lyda gave a confused look to.

"It's still here," she said as she removed her mouthpiece and goggles. "But it's been half a day or so! Shouldn't the waves have taken it away?"

"A normal boat, maybe," Cyrus climbed into the boat, then helped Lyda into it.

He began guiding it back to the island, refusing to speak again as Lyda attempted to find out why the boat remained there. When they reached the island, Cyrus hid the boat and led Lyda to Gina. The trio then made their way to Gina's boat and boarded it, the older woman taking them back to the main island.

"You can shower in there," she gestured to a building as they approached it. "Leave the diving suit there, we'll collect it later. I hope your meeting with whoever they were went well."

"It did, thank you," Lyda said.

Gina nodded, then left, and Lyda looked at Cyrus.

"She doesn't know?"