“...still be here when we come back.”

That’s all Rami heard. Holding a dirty plate in his hand, a dull ache settled in his heart and his ears began to ring.

They’re leaving?... Without me?

He didn’t get the part about 'Aydus' or whatever it was called or flying; he didn’t care about the dragons or supposedly better life. He was being abandoned. He was getting thrown away. Again.

The vast unconscious of his mind quickly closed in on him, color lifting from his vision. Everything was black save for an dimly illuminated path that didn't seem to have an end. Haak and Elli were walking on it. Rami tried to join them but his feet chained to one spot. He tried to go anyway but lost his balance, falling to the ground face first with a thud. Haak and Elli continued on. Dirt stinging his eyes and nose, he hoisted himself up as much as he could with his elbows and tried to call out. But it was no use, it was as if he were mute. He could only watch helplessly as his friends walked further and further away. He was sobbing now, choking on dirt as watched them go, screaming “Please don’t leave me…” but to no avail. They were gone. They had left him behind in the dark, without a word, and nobody ever looked back.

Until someone did.

“Why can I go if they can’t?”

The illusion shattered instantly. The chains around his feet crumbled, color returned, and he was back in reality.

He was back on his doorstep, holding the plate he was going to rub dirt on. He wasn’t surprised that Elli could leave him just like that, though it did make him a little sad. The real shocker was Haak, who was currently arguing with Elli. This was unheard of, unprecedented.

Rami had never seen the two of them clash before, solely because Haak worshiped Elli like he was some kind of god, so the fact that he had even attempted to stand his ground was incredible.

“But I’m older than you…”

Ah, he lost.

Though he was shut down pretty quickly, Rami still took note of the event. He felt like he had Haak’s support, and that made the whole situation a little more okay.

He could feel their conversation begin to end, so he quickly hurried back inside to avoid being caught eavesdropping.

Okay. I can do it. It’s not that hard. It’s just a few words.

With newfound courage from Haak’s backing—and a self-motivating mantra—he decided to go back outside, except he would pretend like it was his first time out.

“There are old portals here for those who find Eidis. You can try finding your path again tonight–”

Elli was in the middle of speaking when Rami burst onto the porch with a plate in his hand, “–and then we’ll leave tomorrow at midnight,” he finished, turning his head in the direction of the creaking door.

Haak looked away.

Absolute silence, save for the groans and scrapes of the old wood, severely in need of replacement.

No, no, no, no… not okay.

‘A few words’ turned out to be much more stressful than he’d originally thought. But there was no denying his awareness this time. He needed to say it; there was no going back.

He clenched his hands into shaky fists in preparation, heartbeat skyrocketing… but he was just too afraid, too afraid of losing them for good, too afraid of realizing they never actually cared. He was too afraid to speak. So he didn’t. He stifled the ache in his heart and sealed his feelings away within a box deep within. Problem solved!

Lighten the mood, gotta lighten the mood. Just say something funny. Anything. Anything!

“Ah haha, this oil just isn’t coming off!” he joked as he held up the plate, “I bet my balls the dirt will actually work! I’m gonna be so pissed if it does, though–”

“Rami.”

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Rami clamped his mouth shut.

Oh no.

“We’re leaving.” Elli said as gently as he possibly could.

“Oh…” Rami lowered his head and stared at his fingers as they fiddled with the dirty plate.

More silence. Lots of silence recently.

He suddenly looked up, meeting Elli’s eyes. “You’ll come back for me won’t you?” he asked, pleading. Then he suddenly recoiled. He covered the lower half of his face with his hands as a blush quickly bloomed over his skin.

What the heck? That was so embarrassing!

He berated himself internally. He was about to tell Elli to forget about it out of shame when he noticed the look on Elli’s face and froze.

Elli’s heart stopped. His lips parted slightly and his eyes glazed over; he seemed at a loss, which filled Rami’s stomach with dread.

Is he…not planning on coming back?...

After some time, Elli answered, “I promise,” and his voice broke.

With a breath of relief, Rami nodded wordlessly and went back inside. He had given up on the dirt idea.

Haak finally looked up. He also had nothing to say. He only shot Elli a look before heading back inside as well.

Elli didn’t join them. He stood in the cold, night air for a long time, looking out into the distance—at the barrier, past the barrier, below it.

+ + +

Romina shivered as she tossed and turned in bed. She was sweating profusely, clearly struggling.

This was no ‘headache’.

A fever, Elli thought with his hand on her forehead, a bad one.

She seemed more at peace with his touch, no longer trembling in her sleep. He could feel the wetness on his palm but he didn’t wipe it off. The sweat disappeared on its own as his arm dropped back down to his side, as if it never existed.

He stared at her for a while. Then he stared at the floor. Then he sat down and shut his eyes.

Rami had caught him off guard earlier. He was still feeling a little rattled, so he was in no mood to see him again.

Around thirty minutes later, he left the room.

He cleaned himself up and entered the room he’d been sharing with Haak and Rami. Their eyes were closed but he knew they weren’t sleeping. He slipped under the covers next to Haak, sandwiching him in the middle.

Rami opened his eyes when he heard Elli crawl into bed.

In a light tone, he whispered, “So, you guys are really leaving tomorrow?”

“No,” replied Haak calmly.

“What?” Rami asked in disbelief. He was sitting up now but the others hadn’t moved.

“I’m not going.”

Rami was dumbfounded. He knew Elli had been blindsided too, but his face betrayed nothing. In fact, he looked so at peace, he had to be asleep.

“Hey, what’s going on?” he whispered to Haak.

“I’m not going,” he repeated,” “unless we’re all going.”

Rami was flabbergasted.

What the heck? What the hell is going on?

He was about to interrogate him when Elli finally spoke.

“I can bring you. Rami.”

Rami gasped internally. It was impossible to tell in the dark, but he was beaming ear to ear. He really did want to go. He didn’t want to be left behind by his only friends. Touched, he laid back down and flipped over, wrapping his head in blanket. His heart was full.

But Haak just kept going.

“Everyone.”

HAAK!! Stop!! Rami screamed in his mind, holding his head. What are you doing??!!!

He didn’t want Elli to change his mind.

“I really can’t bring everyone.”

Rami abruptly flipped back over before Haak could speak.

“They don’t have to,” he blurted out nervously, “it’s fine. They wouldn’t want to leave anyway. And Romina’s sick!”

Haak pouted, but it wasn’t his family to decide for.

Elli nodded in approval, and with that, the plan was finalized.

All three would head to the trials together. Now it was just a matter of finding Eidis.

Haak and Rami shared an unspoken thought.

Rivals again.

+ + +

“Woah I actually feel it,” said Rami.

He and Haak were seated around Elli with their eyes closed, facing him.

They couldn’t see it, but the Eidis glowed white, illuminating the room. Elli condensed it, centering it around the bed. The Eidis that originally filled the entire room was now compressed in a thick cloud around the three boys. The cloud was thick enough to make Elli uncomfortable, so it was no wonder that Rami could feel it.

But Haak couldn’t feel a thing. No matter how hard he strained, he only felt the air. He was never able to feel anything, so Rami saying he could on his first try was a blow to his ego. Elli could tell what he was thinking.

“Open your mouths.” he instructed, running a portion of the cloud through their respiratory systems.

He’ll definitely feel this.

“This is going to hurt. Brace yourselves.”

He split the Eidis into two smaller clouds behind their backs. Suddenly, hundreds of needle-like spikes emerged from the clouds and pierced them through, weaving through their bodies like threaded needles on cloth.

The two screamed, flopping over and convulsing, but the sewing didn’t stop.

“AHHHH FUCK!!!”

“No cursing. You’re 10.”

Elli was going to try every path possible until at least one stuck. It was going to hurt like a bitch, but they weren’t going to die, not with him there. And they weren’t alone in their pain; it was going to hurt for him too. He could already feel a headache coming on.

The whole ordeal lasted around forty minutes. Any longer and Elli’s body would break apart. He was only 9 after all. As the Eidis clouds and needles dispersed, Elli fell onto his side and curled into a ball, feelling the full force of his body’s deterioration.

Forty minutes… what a joke. Fuck.

The others were in no better shape. They were practically dead, also curled into balls with wet patches of drool, sweat, and whatever other liquid soaked into the blanket beneath them.

But Elli’s job wasn’t done. If Haak and Rami were left as they were, they would be too traumatized to continue their sessions.

His vision was blurry and he had the urge to throw up, but he sat up slowly. Using the very last bit of his strength, he placed a hand on their foreheads and manipulated their memories of the weaving, removing the pain factor entirely. His weak body couldn’t bear to completely rewrite the memories, but he figured they’d be all right. For lower islander kids, they were special, even Rami who had a more normal upbringing.

They won’t be scared off by the little bit of pain… I… lef…t…

Was his final thought before crashing into the floor, unconscious.