PftA Book 2 - Chapter 38

Chapter 38 – Brokering a Deal

I watched nervously as Master Kairos began tapping the tablet on his desk to contact the Senior Researcher I’d heard so much about. I wanted to step around the desk to see the elf in question, but I wasn’t nearly so bold as to take the initiative.

Master Kairos’s recommendation for me to join Justin instead of negotiating for his return had been unexpected, as was his resistance to the idea of bartering for Justin’s return. He’d described it as an opportunity, but I didn’t think Justin would see it that way.

Knowing I couldn’t leave for a while after the reintegration started was almost a comfort. I’d be able to help my family and friends prepare while keeping them safe during the worst of the transition. The first few months had been pretty bad, but it had gotten better after a while.

I was surprised when the large, perfectly clear window beside Master Kairos’s desk transformed into a view screen. I’d seen manatech devices that doubled as everyday items before, but they were expensive, so I’d never owned one.

I adjusted my position, hoping to remain out of sight.

After several awkward minutes spent waiting – minutes that Master Kairos spent focused on the smaller tablet – an image of a very old elf appeared on the viewscreen.

“Henlen,” the elf said, addressing Master Kairos. “I assume you have some purpose in interrupting my work?”

“Greetings, Sir Eri’Non,” the Time Mage said in response. “Out of respect for your time, I’ll be direct. It appears one of your newest test subjects is my disciple’s brother.”

It looked like the elf’s lips twitched, but I couldn’t be sure.

“I presume your protégé wants him back?” the elf asked dismissively.

“Of course she does, but I’ve explained to her why that request might be a bit short-sighted,” Master Kairos said confidently, causing the elf’s brows to rise as my frown grew. I really didn’t like the thought of Justin challenging some dangerous dungeon, especially if he had to do it alone for months.

While I understood Master Kairos’s explanation about the value of the opportunity, I was sure Justin would rather see his children grow up instead of chasing power. Also, I didn’t think he would care if it was short-sighted.

I certainly didn’t.

I just wanted my brother and the rest of the people I cared about to be safe. Maybe it was a bit hypocritical of me to think that way, but I’d made the conscious decision to become an adventurer in the past, and I was choosing to request entry into the dungeon. Justin had done neither of those things.

“Good, because it’s impossible. He’s already been compensated for his participation in the dungeon study.”

“I am aware of that,” my mentor said amicably. “I was hoping for something else.” Master Kairos’s eyes flashed toward me, causing the elf’s gaze to follow. My discomfort grew as I realized the elf very much could see me.

Returning his focus to the wrinkled elf on the screen, Master Kairos said, “My disciple has expressed interest in joining her brother, and I’m well aware of your interest in studying her.”

The elf couldn’t hide the interest in his eyes. From the angle I was standing, his expression almost looked like greed, but that didn’t feel quite right.

The ancient elf nodded slowly before raising both hands in a familiar gesture I’d seen made by several Alliance personnel. “I am interested in your Time/Space Mage, though I am curious why you’d be willing to risk her unnecessarily. While it may be safer than many planets within the Alliance, the Realm Dungeon is still an inherently dangerous place,” the elf said as he eyed my mentor through the device.

The elf dropped his hands casually, as if no longer interested, though his eyes kept flitting back to where I was standing. “Also, I’m not sure the limited data I’d be able to obtain by studying your disciple so long after her awakening would be worth whatever concessions you are hoping for.”

My mentor smirked. “I simply want a system-enforced agreement that you will not document or share anything you discover that could be considered a sect secret. That would include any Time-related secrets you might uncover through your examination and subsequent questioning of my disciple.”

I really didn’t like the sound of that. Master Kairos was making the whole thing seem more like an invasive interrogation than I was expecting. Knowing the Accords restricted any sort of torture, I didn’t think whatever the process was would be overly painful, but…

“As far as my willingness to risk my disciple goes,” Master Kairos continued, “Growth without struggle is shallow. I want Emie to have the opportunity to grow strong and make the sect proud. It has been much too long since a member of our sect was given the honor of challenging your dungeon. Emie’s mundane background will also make it difficult for any who might normally oppose to gain any traction.”

I wasn’t sure what he was referencing or who might be against my inclusion in the dungeon. He’d never mentioned anything of the sort before. However, I could read between the lines to understand something more was going on beneath the surface.

The elf barely seemed to be listening. “I have no problem with your request. I am very interested in studying your disciple, especially with the stipulations. I imagine you wouldn’t have made such demands if you weren’t certain there was something for me to find,” he added knowingly.

“Excellent! Let’s begin the contract—”

“I want to take his place!” I blurted impulsively, interrupting Master Kairos. Knowing how improper my action was, I quietly apologized to my mentor as I stepped forward. Master Kairos tsked and shook his head but said nothing.

The elf looked at me like a hungry man might stare at a buffet. It was creepy, but I was undeterred. “Please, let me take his place instead. I know it might be short-sighted, but my brother has a young child and another on the way. I’m sure he’d rather see his children grow up.”

My words seemed to pull the elf from his daze. He shook his head. “Your brother has already been compensated—”

“Then don’t compensate me,” I said eagerly. “Whatever you gave him, let him keep it and consider that mycompensation for participating.”

The elf narrowed his eyes slightly. “You would have me keep him in [Stasis] until after the portals open?”

“Yes?” I said uncertainly. I knew the mana cost for keeping living beings in [Stasis] was a little higher, but it didn’t seem like something that would impact someone with a Tier Ten budget. “I can’t leave Earth until the portals open anyway. We could trade places then.”

It was a gamble, and I felt pretty certain I’d angered Master Kairos by ignoring his guidance, but I found it hard to care. It was my fault my brother had been taken. I didn’t want my family to suffer because of something I’d effectively caused.

“That’s not how I normally do things,” the elf said slowly, though I could tell his mind was racing. “Having two participants with a strong connection working together could provide valuable insights into motivation.”

I shook my head. “No. It’s either or,” I said decisively. Studying me was clearly more important to the elf than forcing my brother to challenge the Realm Dungeon. He didn’t seem to care about Justin at all, really.

“Either you agree to Master Kairos’s terms of secrecy and let me take my brother’s place, or I don’t participate,” I said, growing bolder. “I’m sure you want to find out why he insisted on a system-enforced contract in the first place. There is a reason,” I added, causing Master Kairos to suck in a breath nearby.

I didn’t bother glancing his way. I was afraid I’d lose whatever momentum I might have if I saw his expression. I was pretty sure I would pay for my insubordination somehow, but if it ensured my brother’s safety, it would be worth it.

Several seconds passed, and I was beginning to doubt my approach. Had I made a mistake?

“Fine. But you will sign the contract as well,” the elf said. “I hope your secrets are as good as you think they are.”

The screen disappeared, transforming into a window once again.

I released a breath and looked at my mentor with a nervous grin. “So… that went well?”

= = =

“You got him back?” Bell almost collapsed in relief at the news when I arrived at Rhona’s office a while later. She must have just woken from her exhausted nap since there were still marks on her face from sleeping.

“Not yet. In six months or so?” I said, glancing at Rhona for confirmation. I was basing the dates off the previous timeline, but it was always possible that something might have changed.

“That sounds about right,” she said, looking at me critically. She probably wondered if Master Kairos had told me something he shouldn’t have. “I can’t give specific dates for obvious reasons, but that’s close enough for planning purposes. It actually may be less, given the work you’ve done with the portals. We might be able to activate them sooner than originally projected.”

“Thank you, Emie,” Bell said through tears as she hugged me. “Thank you so much. Thank you, thank you…”

I hadn’t told them I’d agreed to a magically binding contract to trade places with Justin, but I planned to share it once Bell had calmed down. I’d likely have to explain it to Rhona before that, but based on the sad look she gave me, I suspected she had an idea of what I had done.

I patted Bell’s back. “We still need to prepare. There is so much to do, especially if we’re going to keep everyone we care about safe. You already know I’m leaving once the portals open…” I’d mentioned it when explaining what being Master Kairos’s disciple entailed. “…I’d like it if you could help me convince my parents to relocate somewhere safer once everyone’s interfaces activate.”

I’d reassessed things several times as the apocalypse drew closer. My idea of a bunker would work great for someone like me, but it wouldn’t be nearly as useful for my family. Maybe if I planned to stay on Earth long-term… but I didn’t. The bunker was much less useful once I was removed from the equation. It was something that should have been obvious.

Wanting my family to shelter in place was foolish. They needed to level and gain strength. Otherwise, they would only be delaying the inevitable. Protecting them from every danger would only harm them in the long run.

It made a lot more sense for my family to either join a community like the one I expected to appear around Atlas Headquarters or move to a nice community off-planet as soon as possible. Staying on Earth might be more familiar, but their opportunities for growth would be severely limited.

I looked at Rhona. “There are family units in the housing towers, right?”

She nodded. “There are a few empty units.”

“Can Bell and I each rent a unit close to each other? I’ll most likely ask my parents to move into the apartment I rent when everything happens. They’d probably be safer here than out where they live.”

“There should be no issues with that. You’re both still enrolled in university classes.”

With a little cajoling, I persuaded Bell to come with me to the housing office on the second floor. After a bit of discussion about our needs, Bell leased a three-bedroom family apartment slightly bigger than the one she and Justin currently shared. I put down a deposit for an apartment a few doors down, but I scheduled the move-in date for the first of April.

If things progressed along the same timeline, it would be two days before the apocalypse started. That was plenty of time.

I asked Rhona to contact the apartment complex where Bell and Justin lived since her company was one of the big employers in the area. It didn’t take long for her to work something out to allow them to break their lease early. Moving was simple with ample spatial storage, and the new apartment was set up before the end of the normal workday.

I decided to stay in the spare room of Bell’s new apartment for now to make things easier on Bell. Amie seemed excited to have Aunt Emie staying with them, but I wasn’t sure if she was truly happy that I would be staying there or just excited about eating my food more often. I wanted to believe it was the first option, but I knew she really loved mana-infused foods.

Rhona’s restriction had never applied to Amie since she couldn't awaken at such a young age, so I often snuck her treats when nobody was looking.

Now, I just needed to explain to my parents why Justin had suddenly been sent on a secret ‘mission’… as a civilian… working for a tech company. He’d finished his military contract the summer before, so a sudden deployment shortly after leaving the military would be more than a little odd.

Hopefully, they wouldn’t ask too many questions.