Trolley Problem I

Beauty was a subjective term. What one person found beautiful might not appeal to another, especially when it came to other humans. Type factored in heavily, and social norms. A million arguments could be had about this.

But this boy, at least, was pretty like a rose or a calla lily. There was something about him that drew the eye and made you marvel.

As for his actual appearance, he was a lanky teenager. He had deep brown skin and dark brown eyes, and long hair that reached his lower back; a sharp nose and cheekbones, and discolored eyebags like someone who slept about four hours a night.

This was, of course, Sai-ee, Ry’keth’s court magician.

What the hell is happening?

“Why, how, and what are you doing in our bedroom?” Jayla asked.

He stretched, stood up, and then sat down on Jayla’s bed. “I can go into the other room if you want.”

“That’s not an answer,” Jayla said.

Also, please don’t. Makis was home.

“Are you Naomi?”

“I’m Naomi,” I said. “I thought you were confined to the palace.”

“Wait, who is this? The only Koteran kid in the palace would be…oh, that’s how you got in here,” Jayla realized.

Sai-ee had the theoretical ability to draw a teleportation circle that could take him anywhere. But it had a large chance of backfiring, and he was near-constantly watched to make sure he didn’t. In general, he was denied any components to cast his own spells.

“Yeah. Lil helped me out, said my life was in danger and if I went to you you’d probably look out for me. I didn’t wanna die, so here I am.” With that, he lay down on the bed and closed his eyes.

“That’s my bed,” Jayla said.

Sai-ee wasn’t asleep yet, but he ignored her.

This was one thing I hadn’t been expecting. Thanks, Lil. The original plotlines of the novel were spinning out of control. If Sai-ee was here, maybe he wouldn’t die. Or maybe he’d get shot through the bedroom window by a government operative for escaping. He could help us out, aid our cause; though I didn’t know if he’d consent to that.

If Ky'cina got her hands on him, she’d absolutely use him for every last drop that he was worth, just like the Ky’an’th government had—either that or kill him and bring the plot back on track.

When Sai-ee died, the things he powered also lost all their energy; that was a fact of how this world worked. He didn’t have to concentrate or expend energy to maintain them, but they were linked to him and so when he died streetlights, cars, tanks, cannons, air-conditioning, and practically everything that made Ry’keth civilization so advanced would break down. So, while there were backup systems—since Ry’keth knew this—his premature death had changed the course of history.

“What are we going to do?” Jayla asked me. “We can’t handle the most important kid ever being here. People are going to come for him, right?”

“First they come for me,” Sai-ee said, face muffled in the mattress, “then they come for you. Then, they come for the guy down the road or something.”

“And he’s obnoxious,” Jayla said.

“It’d be messed up if you didn’t look out for me. I’m escaping an evil regime.” He covered his head with Jayla’s pillow, further becoming one with her bed.

One thing about Sai-ee was that he didn’t give a damn about anything. He’d had apathy instilled in him through years of powerlessness. From how I’d written him, at least, he didn’t have strong feelings about Ry’keth’s evilness and generally disdained both sides.

With one foot, he kicked a blanket over himself, keeping his face in the mattress. He didn’t say more.

“We can’t keep him here for too long,” I told Jayla, “because of Makis, but…”

“He’s putting her in danger, I bet.”

“Look…” Maybe going into another room for this conversation would be best, but I didn’t want to make it apparent that something was going on in the bedroom. “He needs looking out for, too.”

Jayla hugged herself. “I—I can understand that!”

“I’m trying to sleep,” Sai-ee complained.

“In my bed,” Jayla said, and rolled him across said bed so he was wrapped in the sheets like a caterpillar, then pushed him off.

“How dare you,” Caterpillar-ee said, not getting up from the floor. “What did I ever do to you?”

“Seriously.” Jayla knelt down to be on his level. “You’re Sai-ee, right?”

He looked up at her with annoyance. “Yeah.”

“The guns, the tanks, all of those…” She trailed off.

Lazy fingerguns. “Blam blam.”

“This is serious. You powered them, didn’t you?”

“Oh, yeah.”

“Oh, yeah?” Jayla grabbed him by the shirt, pulling him up to meet her eyes. He hung there like a limp noodle, bedsheets trailing after him. “People have died—hundreds of people—and all you can say is ‘oh yeah?’”

“Oh yeah, man.”

Jayla drew her fist back, about to hit him, tears of rage glimmering in her eyes.

Stopped.

Dropped Sai-ee’s shirt, let him crumple down to the floor.

“I’m gonna—going to go to work. Bye.”

“Have some eggs before you go.”

“Not hungry.”

And with that she left.

Sai-ee drew his knees up to his chest on the floor and said, “Who cares.”

“Obviously she cares,” I said, as gently as I could. “You care, too. You don’t enjoy harming people.”

“What do you know about me?”

More than he knew. Though, what I’d said was really taking a positive view of his personality, but I hoped it would be something he’d want to live up to, at least…when I was his age, I’d clung onto the words of nice people in their twenties, seeing older coworkers and teacher’s assistants as the epitome of who I wanted to become and the ones I desperately wanted to like me.

I didn’t want to kill him. I’d start by being kind to him.

“Have you eaten? Want some eggs?”