“And, that’s done,” Tel said, clipping the back on the watch with a satisfying snap. A quick polish across the butterfly engraving – excellent quality, that little work of art – and he handed the timepiece back to Shara. “Thanks for waiting until we got a bit further away from town and found a nice spot like this to work,” he added, pointing at the tree stump he’d used as a workbench in the middle of the small clearing.

Shara inspected the watch, flipping it around a few times in her hand like an old habit, then snapped it back on the chain around her neck. Her mouth opened a few times, like she was trying to decide what she was going to say, before she finally spoke. “It’s important to me. The watch, I mean. I don’t know a lot about fixing it, but I figured the better you could see, the less likely you’d be to, I dunno, make it explode or something.”

“It would be very difficult to make a watch explode,” Tel said. “During the war, there were weapons that harnessed small bits of chaos, they called them particles, and forced them in a semi-condensed state of solid matter, before shooting them off like an arrow. Well, an arrow that kicked like a horse and could put a hole straight through a man. Not quite an explosion, but likely the most I could do with a watch given the right parts.”

“That’s a joke, right?” Shara asked. “Cause, you’re not making your I’m-joking face, and I’m a little confused.”

“No joke,” Tel said, systematically checking his tools for dirt or nicks, and then placing them back in his tool case. “Those particle weapons were some of the smallest and least powerful of what was developed during the Escalation Wars. And, despite what the State would have you believe, they incorporated Chaos just as much into their weapons as the sorcerers did, though it still bled out and created the escalation.”

“Esca-what-now?” Shara asked.

Tools packed away, Tel slipped the case into his backpack and stood up with a stretch. The small burn between his shoulders was oddly comforting, a brief return to his normal amidst the days of blood and running. The single thought of blood cracked open the door in his mind, fingers clawing at the frame, and something silver moved behind.

“What do you know about the war? I mean, it’s right there in the name,” Tel forced the words out, and pushed the door closed again. The stress was making that door open too often. He needed to find a place of safety and quiet so he could go back to just focusing on clocks. Working kept the door closed. And…if it opened all the way again, would he ever be able to shut it?

“Just the usual, I guess?” Shara said. “You know, what you hear around. Sorcerers tried to take over the world, so the State fought back. Built crazy, killer clock-weapons too, because they didn’t have magic. War lasted a bunch of years and then suddenly the State destroyed all of their own weapons to end the War, though I never really got that last part.”

“That’s the gist of it, but really leaves out the important parts,” Tel said, standing up. “Shall we continue? I can tell you what I know while we walk, or you can test out your watch.”

“Can we do them all at the same time?” she asked, an eager glint in her eye as she looked at the stopwatch in her hand.

“Absolutely,” Tel said. “Lead on.”

“This way,” she said, pushing the plunger on her stopwatch. The first tick of the second hand burst with enough chaos energy that Shara actually jumped back and held her hand out in front of her, before blinking several times and giggling. “Hah, thought it exploded…”

“I told you I couldn’t make it explode,” Tel said flatly, then added, “Probably.”

“I know, I know,” Shara said. “But, maybe you were just a much better liar than I thought, and you were waiting for your chance to off me.”

“No, I’m…not like…that,” Tel said, but turned his attention back to testing her magic before thoughts of blood and death opened the door again. That was already happening too often. “Are you going to see what you can do?”

“Sure, but you have to tell me about the esca-something at the same time,” Shara said, literally stepping up into the air. “Huh, it does feel a bit easier…”

“Escalation,” Tel said. “And start with what you can normally do. Sometimes the extra power can confuse your instincts. Get familiar first with how it feels different.”

“How do you know so much about this?” she asked.

“I’ve read a lot of books,” Tel said.

Shara looked at him for a moment, standing two feet above the ground, then shrugged. “Okay. Escalation, go.”

“Sure, like you said, that was the general progression of the war,” Tel said while he watched Shara climbs stairs higher into the air between the trees as she led them through the forest. “A few clarifications though. First, sorcerers weren’t trying to take over the world. Yes, there were some who were abusing their magic, but it was really the destruction of Cynak that started everything.”

“Cynak?” Shara asked, stepping, then quick-stepping forward on the air.

“It was a town around the size of Gravelburg that was burned to the ground overnight. No survivors. The State believed sorcerers did it,” Tel explained.

“Did they? Sorcerers, I mean, did they do it?”

“Impossible to say at this point. From what little I was able to find on the town, there were reports that suggested something else happened, but in the end, it doesn’t really matter. The State used that event to justify creating weapons to fight back.

“They started with these things they called guns. They were like crossbows, but instead of shooting bolts, they used that clockwork machinery to harden chaotic particles, like I was telling you about before. The early versions weren’t very strong, kind of like if I punched you…”

“So, basically a tickle?” Shara asked, spinning on the air to quirk a smile at him.

“Fine, kind of like if you punched somebody,” Tel said flatly. “Where was I? Right, they created these weapons. But, like any machine that forced Order into the world, the universe balanced it out by creating ambient Chaos. This sudden influx of Chaos in turn made the sorcerers stronger. For example, if one before could throw rock-sized balls of fire, suddenly they were hurling dog-sized blasts.”

“I bet the State wasn’t happy about that,” Shara said, stopping, and then climbing straight up like she was using a ladder.

“No, they weren’t,” Tel said. “So, you can do it with your hands too. Is it easier than with your feet?” he asked while he squinted at where she grabbed the air. Maybe it was his imagination, but it was almost like one of the chaos butterflies hardened for a heartbeat for her to grab onto.

“Both the same?” she said, now a good twenty feet in the air. “Never really thought about it. Keep going. What did the State do next?”

“This is where escalation comes in. Because the sorcerers were suddenly stronger, the State needed to get stronger too. So, they built bigger weapons,” Tel explained.

The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

“More of those gun things?” Shara asked, doing a cartwheel high above the forest floor.

“To begin with, but over the years and decades the war went on, they built far more terrifying things. Clockwork monsters as big as buildings with enough power to destroy entire towns. From the reports, it’s honestly a miracle anybody survived.”

“How come the sorcerers didn’t lose? Oh, wait,” Shara said from a handstand position directly above Tel. “Those bigger machines, they created more chaos, didn’t they? So, the sorcerers were stronger too?”

“Exactly. That dog-sized ball of fire from before became a meteor falling from the sky. Both sides wielded far more power than anybody should, and the entire world was on the brink of wiping itself out. Not just our continent, but those across the oceans as well. War was everywhere, and it was destroying everything.”

“Wow. What happened next?” Shara asked, quickly stepping down like she was on a spiral staircase until she was beside Tel on the ground.

Tel blew out a breath. “Then the State finished its ultimate weapon, and made its biggest mistake,” he said, pausing and looking at Shara.

Shara’s eyebrow went up as she puzzled out what that could mean, until it seemed to hit her, and her eyes went wide while her lips parted. “Reapers?” she practically whispered, head swiveling left and right like one of the legendary weapons might be hiding in the woods with them.

“Reapers,” Tel confirmed. “Nothing else the State had created came close to how dangerous they were.”

“Why were they so dangerous? You said creating them was the State’s mistake, why?” Shara quick-fired the questions.

“Same answer for both of those questions, actually,” Tel said and pointed at his own head. “Because they were alive. They could think. And they didn’t like being used as a weapon for war. So, instead of crushing the sorcerer faction like the State had hoped, the Reapers instead formed a third faction. Well, maybe a fourth if some of the rumours are true, but regardless, the State had created their own worst enemy – a living weapon that used both order and chaos.”

Shara walked over to a nearby tree and leaned against it, taking out her stopwatch again to stare at the butterflies practically pouring out of it. “How did we get to now then? I mean, this?” she asked, lifting her watch up so Tel knew what she was talking about.

“Well, neither side was going to win the war. The sorcerers and the State were both getting slaughtered by the Reapers, while already fighting each other. So, the State bet everything on one final gamble.

“One late night, the State launched an all-out attack, everything they had on every front, all at once. Nothing was spared for ‘later’, and it was possibly the most devastating onslaught the world has ever seen. Night turned to day, cities vanished in fire, the world cracked, and thunder shook the air,” Tel said.

“And they won?” Shara asked.

“No, kind of the opposite. The attack, as powerful as it was, was never going to succeed. If it could’ve, they would’ve done it long before that. It was just a distraction. By then they’d learned the cyclical nature of order and chaos. They understood the more they built, the stronger their enemy would get. The war would never end.

“So, they used that pause after the attack, that moment when the sorcerers wondered if more was coming, to turn off every war machine across the world. Every single one. They left themselves wide open, betting on the fact that turning off their weapons would cut off the source of the sorcerers’ power.

“And, luckily for them, they were right. The sorcerers hesitated just long enough for the built-up ambient chaos to flutter off, as it always does. And, with no machines to replenish it, they were depowered almost overnight. The war ended the next day, though the State spent years destroying their own machines where they could, to make sure nobody could turn them back on to start things all over.

“Around that time, they also discovered the secret of Chronosteel and how to create Tailcoats, but they couldn’t mass-produce them. Instead of using them to wage war, they became a deterrent, and we sorcerers are left to slink through the forest or hide in mountains,” Tel said, his story finished.

“You know, for a guy who doesn’t talk much, once you get going, you spin quite a story,” Shara said without any trace of sarcasm.

“Ah, I’m sorry,” Tel said, snapping his mouth shut. Stupid. Sure, she’d asked, but that didn’t mean she wanted to listen to him ramble on. She probably wasn’t really interested in anything he’d said.

“That’s one,” she said, holding up a finger. “And it was a compliment. I liked your story.”

“One…? Ah,” Tel said, heat rising up his neck at her words.

“Which reminds me, you still owe me a secret from yesterday. What’s it going to be?” she asked, letting the watch hang from around her neck while she rubbed her hands together.

“I already told you the secret,” Tel pointed out quietly. “My magic. Like I said, I never told anybody about it before.”

“Oh,” Shara said. “Yeah, I guess that’s true. Fine, I accept your secret! Now, back to your story, what happened to the Reapers?”

Tel looked to his left then back to Shara. “You know it’s bad luck to talk about them too much. Let’s talk about your magic, instead.”

Shara looked like she was going to argue the point for a second – Reapers were a juicy topic since there was so little actual information on them – but Tel gestured at her watch again, and she shrugged.

“Fine,” she said, taking her stopwatch in hand again. “It all felt easier, but I dunno, I didn’t sense any more power like you were talking about. I don’t think anything is different. Are you sure you fixed it right?” she asked, holding the watch up.

“Yes, I’m sure I fixed it right,” Tel said, pushing back the urge to snap at the insult to his skills. “And, I think you’re wrong.”

“Pardon?” Shara said, her arms crossing in front of her chest, and her other eyebrow going up. That wasn’t the question-eyebrow – that was the I’m-going-to-hurt-you-if-you-don’t-talk-fast eyebrow.

“I was watching you when you used your magic, back at Kulio’s and then here in the forest, and I think I noticed a difference,” Tel said quickly. When Shara’s foot started tapping, Tel went on. “Back at the store, you always moved the same way – your hands and feet were always flat down. Like you were walking on the floor, except it was higher up.”

“Of course I was,” Shara said. “That’s how my power works. That’s why I have to do things like stairs or a ladder to go up. My magic is always under my hands or feet.”

“Then you didn’t notice when you were running around above?” Tel asked. “Specifically, when you were making tight turns.”

“Notice what?” she asked, but Tel had obviously gotten her attention.

“Your feet weren’t flat. It was subtle, only a slight angle at most, but definitely not flat.”

“Are you…?” she started, and Tel nodded and waved his hand at the same time.

“Let’s skip the questions and move straight to testing. Stay on the ground, but hold your foot out so the sole of your boot is flat against the palm of my hand,” Tel instructed, holding his hand slightly out to the side, fingers pointing down.

“What’s this going to…?”

“Like I said, skip the questions. Foot. Hand. Go,” Tel said.

“Who are you and what did you do with Tel?” she asked, but walked over and lifted her leg so her foot was against his hand. “Hope I didn’t step in any bear-shit along the way.”

“Now, use your magic,” Tel said, resisting the urge to look down at his hand.

“Sure, but I…” Shara started, but cut off abruptly as her eyes snapped to look at her foot. “What the…? It’s working.”

Tel looked down at her foot, and watched as Shara flexed her leg, pushing gently, though he felt none of it on his hand. “Now the other one,” he said, pointing at her foot still on the ground.

“You’re just trying to get me to do something stupid,” she said.

“Not at all. Besides, even if it doesn’t work, the fall is a small one,” Tel said.

“Won’t stop you from laughing.”

“Would you like me to turn around?”

“Yes.”

“…really?”

“Yes.”

Tel blew out the air in his lungs through his nose, but nodded and turned around. “Good luck,” he said, waiting for a soft thud on the ground if his theory didn’t hold up.

“…son of a bitch,” Shara said, and Tel half-turned his head. There hadn’t been the sound of… “WOOOOOOO!” she shouted from a few feet above Tel, and he fully spun around.

Shara stared him straight in the eye, except she was completely upside-down, her feet pointed towards the sky and a smile spread from ear to ear.

“It actually worked,” she said. “Would you look at this?”

And Tel did…because something was off. It was great her magic had worked like he’d theorized, but what was nagging at him. She looked exactly like she would if she was standing on the ground in front of him, except she was inverted. Isn’t that what he should’ve expected…?

Ah. Exactly like. She wasn’t hanging from the air, she was standing on the air.

“Your hair is still hanging down to your shoulders,” he said. “How do you feel? Are you dizzy at all? Do you feel a pressure in your head? Are your legs falling asleep?”

“I’m fine,” she said, doing a little jig, upside-down, in the air. “Legs and head are all good. Why?”

“Your magic is creating your own gravity,” Tel said. “That’s amazing. And very convenient. We need to do some more testing.”

“Right, but let’s do it while we move. If we stand around in the sun all day, we’ll never get out of here,” Shara said.

“Good point. Can you come down first so I can borrow the energy from your watch?” Tel asked.

“Sure, what do you need it for?” she asked, literally walking a half-crescent in the air until her feet were back on solid ground.

“I figured it might be nice to have a tent and sleeping bags for tonight,” Tel said matter-of-factly.

“You have sleeping bags? And a tent?” Shara asked, and up went the dangerous eyebrow again.

“Didn’t…didn’t I mention that?” he asked.

“No,” she said. “No, you didn’t.”