Genuine Goodbyes

Snow lined the inside of the tent. It was draining enough, fighting Lucifero, but having to drag Lacia out of the cold and into the tent really took it out of her. She mustered just enough strength to drag two sleeping bags over Lacia and herself before she passed out. Aria groaned. Never in her wildest dreams did she think she would come face to face with a devil–much less the third ranked in the Reverse Realm, Lucifero. What she didn’t understand was why it chose to torment Lacia. What was gained by using her dreams as a medium? What if it had managed to steal her gift? She shuddered. The questions were relentless, but she needed answers. Right now though, Lacia came first.

She turned over on her side to face Lacia, still asleep. She had successfully pulled her from her nightmare, but there was still the aftermath to deal with. There was no way of knowing whether the devil had transmitted any information back to the Reverse Realm or not. However, one look at her face and Aria knew Lacia was in serious trouble, regardless.

Lucifero had drained nearly all of her mana and her lifeforce. The ghostly paleness in her face was testament to just how close she came to losing her life. Lacia’s pale blue lips quivered under the fleece of the sleeping bag, body barely clinging to life.

Aria wanted nothing more than to share part of her lifeforce with Lacia–it was the least she could do for treating her the way she did. Blasting the lights, or shadows, she supposed, out of that damn devil had drained her dry. Lacia would have to pull through via her own power, regardless of how Aria felt.

Lacia stirred, causing her sleeping bag to slip off. All she could muster was a weak whisper. “Aria… We’re at–” Lacia seized into a coughing fit before she could finish.

Aria shook her head. “Your body is fighting desperately to keep you alive. You have no idea how close to death you are,” she said in a hushed voice. “Please try not to talk.”

Regaining her composure, Lacia weakly pointed to the map Aria was fidgeting with earlier. “Gila. West. Not east.”

“Gila? But that’s… west.” Aria quickly grabbed the map from the floor, turning it around. Realizing her mistake, she met Lacia’s one-eye-open gaze. “I was wrong. I am so sorry, Lacia.”

A deep exhale escaped her icy lips. “Gate.”

That was all Aria needed to hear. Throwing the sleeping bags onto Lacia, she ran headlong into the blinding snow. A minute later she returned, a gleeful smile on her face. “You found the Gila border gate. I suppose you kept it a secret since you didn’t trust me,” she said awkwardly.

Lacia shook her head, giving Aria a weak smile before falling back into a contorted sleep. Aria watched as Lacia’s face transitioned between rest and torment. She stood up and walked back into the raging snowstorm. If her hunch was correct, she could save them both.

Border gates were constructed of a highly resilient metal–berilite. Even so, they were always heavily guarded. She was surprised neither she nor Lacia had tripped any magic sensors, stumbling around in the snow, further supporting Aria’s hunch.

“The flash-freeze after that heatwave should have weakened the locks on the gate,” Aria said as she approached. “If I can break them off, the gate should open.”

To her surprise, she managed to turn a series of locks fastening the gate shut. The entirety of the border gate had been left unlocked. As the gate slowly creaked open, she poked her head inside, finding only an empty corridor and piles of discarded armor and broken torch hilts. It looked as if the entirety of the border guard had quit right then and there.

“Something’s not right here. Who just leaves their border unguarded like this?” She poked around further, searching for any signs of life. Curiosity always had gotten the better of her, for better or for worse.

She wandered down the corridor a few minutes longer. What would normally be a fully illuminated and bustling pathway was now cold and dark–devoid of all life. A year after the car accident, she’d been given the opportunity to visit the Aviid Isles as part of a school field trip. She was reluctant at first, wallowing in her guilt and sorrow, but at a time like this, she was glad she took the opportunity. Their border gate was structured in nearly the same way as Gila’s which made it easier to navigate than if she had gone in blind.

“Which means this should–” Applying pressure to a tile on the wall, a new corridor appeared. “Thought so. The country of Gila is now open for business, courtesy of Aria Miruna.”

Long drives weren’t Licht or Brendan’s specialty, but Mana slept nearly the entire trip. Afraid to wake her, they let her sleep. Brendan picked up on the new air of confidence in her. Of course, Brendan had grown confident in his own abilities, but it was apparent Mana was their new ticket-winner.

The night seemed to drag on. Brendan had taken over around one a.m. as promised, only stopping to refill the tank around six that morning. Licht dozed on and off in the passenger seat. Considering his lack of magical practice, Brendan wondered just how well he would be able to protect his friend. His knowledge of the unknown was immense and a great help, but Licht lacked the power to protect himself if push came to shove.

“Licht, would you mind waking Mana up for me? We’re only a couple hours from Buunit.”

He lifted his head off the slack in his seatbelt, using it as a makeshift pillow. He yawned. “On it. She’s been asleep all night. Is this what they call beauty sleep?”

Brendan let out a small laugh. “Hey, that was a good one.”

Licht lightly rubbed Mana’s shoulders, rocking her back and forth in an attempt to wake her. Nothing. He tried again, a little harder this time. Rustling from the backseat indicated she was finally awake, a small groan escaping into the front of the car.

She rubbed her eyes. “What time is it?” Glancing at the clock, a scolding tone crept into her voice. “You were supposed to wake me up last night. Not this morning.”

“Apologies, but you were sleeping so soundly, we hated to wake you,” Licht said.

“Guys, it’s literally,” she did a double-take, “nine in the morning?” The sun hadn’t risen yet. By all technicalities, it was still night. “Why is it still dark outside?”

“What time?” the boys said in unison.

“Have you not been looking at the clock? It’s literally nine in the morning.” Changing the subject, she decided to pick their brains. “Doesn’t this sound like a popular Alurian myth, though? About the sun losing its light and the opening of some series of gates?” Mana shook her head. “I can’t remember much else. It’s been a long time since I was told the story.”

Brendan looked towards Licht. If anyone had a response to that, it would be him. “I think what you’re talking about is a myth that originated way back when your two families first began their lives here.” Licht motioned for Mana to sit back. “You see, your families were involved in more than just the Searing Wounds event. They were the first people to settle in Alura,” he continued. “When they arrived, they uncovered something dark.”

“What was it?” Mana said anxiously. Licht had caught Brendan’s attention as well considering his family was also somehow involved.

“We’d be here all day, or night I guess, if I explained everything,” Licht said. “So I’ll make this short.”

Small snowflakes began to stick to the windshield of the car. A white dusting of fresh snow covered the road ahead as it blew across the highway. The sun had still yet to rise and the blowing snow was beginning to limit visibility.

“What both of your ancestors discovered was a series of six gates–not like a fence or border gate. In order to open them, a sacrifice had to be made, but it took a very special sacrifice.” Licht’s voice began to shudder. “If these gates were ever opened, they would allow passage to and from a dimension known as the Reverse World: a place where devils and other devious beings reside.”

The temperature in the car had begun to drop. Mana looked especially cold. She had been asleep all night and her stomach was empty. Sensing an opportunity to briefly shift the topic of discussion, Brendan spoke up.

“Let’s continue this conversation a little later. We’re almost to Buunit and we haven’t eaten in nearly a day,” he suggested. “We need food and we need to figure out what the plan is when we meet up with Lacia.” Mana’s face lit up at the mention of food.

“Is that ok with you Licht? Sorry to change the subject,” Brendan apologized.

“Brendan’s right. Besides, I’m starving and judging by the look on your face, Mana, you have no idea where we are, do you?” Licht observed.

“Umm, yeah. Where’s Bruunit?” she said, rubbing the back of her head.

Bruunit was a small town in the far northern territory of Alura. Only the hardiest of people lived there. Summers were pleasantly cool, but it was brutally cold and snowy most other times of the year. Bruunit had nothing to offer in terms of attractions despite it being labeled one of the most beautiful places in northern Alura. Snow dotted the open landscape and rooftops. An occasional snow plow patrolled the main roads.

A cloud of snow blew over the car completely obscuring the windshield as the group drove through town. A blizzard had rolled in alongside them. Parked cars were quickly buried under the huge, wet flakes.

Brendan turned the brights off so as not to blind other drivers on the road, but it seemed everyone had already gone inside–even the plow drivers knew the effort was moot. The only lights came from a small diner in the center of town.

“It’s better than being out in the storm,” he thought as he pulled in, careful to park the car to avoid snow drifts.

The diner had a modern feel to it, but seemed to embrace more of a progressive theme overall. Several AI walked back and forth, emptying boxes of food. Walking in, an overhead voice greeted them.

“Welcome to Nu-Landia. The best dining experience in all of Alura! Please take a seat.”

A holographic screen appeared in front of the group. Holo screens seemed to scroll endlessly. Was there no limit to the food these AI could make in such a tiny place?

“Please take a seat,” the overhead speaker repeated.

Mana walked over to a booth and promptly placed herself, diligently crafting an enormous serving. She looked up from the menu screen. “I’m hungry and if either of you mention how much I’m about to eat,” she gave it a moment of thought, “you’re dead.”

Brendan and Licht looked at each other and shrugged, disregarding the potential size of the bill. Good food never hurt anyone. “Now that we’re all here,” Mana said, pleased, “there’s a couple things we need to consider before we head back out to try and find Lacia.”

“Hey, before we get too far into things, there’s something I need to say.” The uneasy look on Licht’s face gave him away. “I have limited magical fortitude defensively or in combat. As much as I’d love to keep tagging along, I feel it’s too dangerous for me.”

Silence fell over the diner as Licht continued adding onto his order, the screen flickering with each new addition. There was no ignoring the Elephant in the room. Mana was the first to speak up.

“Licht, you’ve been an invaluable asset and friend to me. We wouldn’t have made it this far without you,” she said trying to ease his worry. “We aren’t going to force you to come along with us. That wouldn’t be fair.”

Brendan nodded in agreement. “Mana’s right. As your friend, I can’t put you into further danger than what I have already, but,” he paused, “the knowledge you have of Alurian history and whatever this stuff with the Reverse World is isn’t something either of us have.” Brendan looked into Mana’s eyes. He knew she didn’t want to see Licht go, either.

“I suppose you’re in luck then,” Licht said. “My magic isn’t totally useless.”

He pulled a small device from his pocket as he placed it on the table in front of him. “This little guy here will allow me to see and hear you wherever you are. Likewise, I’ll be able to communicate through it too.”

Grabbing the device, he flipped a small switch on the back. Licht moved to the back of the diner as he pulled out another small device. It quickly transformed into a high-tech earpiece. The device on the table sprung to life, whirling and chirping as a hologram appeared at its center. “With this, I can communicate with you no matter how far we are from each other. In fact,” Licht lightly tapped the earpiece. The hologram changed, revealing Mana and Brendan as it tracked their movements in real-time.

“So that’s what you were working on, after all that time away,” Brendan said, impressed. “Let me guess. It’s called a Leyliner and it draws mana from the leylines in the earth.” He grinned. “Did I get it?”

Mana was too stunned for words. She’d never seen anything like it before. Her eyes darted between Licht and the device on the table. In a normal world, she’d propose starting a business.

“Spot on, my friend. It’s not perfect, but I've been clunking away at this thing for a while now,” he said admiring his handiwork.

An idea suddenly popped into Brendan’s mind–a workaround to their transportation problem. “Mana, we can let Licht use the car and we can use your magic to glide the rest of the way to the border gate,” he explained. “I can use my mana as a shield to protect us from the wind chills and keep us warm.”

“That’s actually an ingenious idea,” Mana said. “My magic isn’t perfect and there’s still a few things that I know I’m still not remembering completely, but I can get us to the border gate no problem.” She turned to face Licht seated across from her. “How do we use the Leyliner? Like, does it follow us or are we supposed to carry it…?”

“Actually, when you use it as an earpiece, it allows you to speak to me directly. As long as you have it on, I can see and hear everything as if I were with you.” He flipped another small switch on the side of the device. “By flipping this switch, it becomes a chip that will stick like a magnet. You just have to focus your mana on whatever point you place it. It’s limited to visuals-only in this mode, but it will still transmit what you’re seeing back to me.”

“Simple enough, but where do you plan to stay while we’re away?” Brendan questioned.

“I have friends in high places,” he replied with a grin. “There’s a place waiting for me back in Seria.”

“Well, I guess that’s settled then,” Mana said, contentedly. “Oh, look, our food has arrived!”

The trio stood outside by the car as they prepared to say their goodbyes. Snow had begun falling faster, piling up at a rapid pace as near-whiteout conditions fell upon the sleepy town like a blanket. Dim light streamed from the windows of the diner as it struggled to illuminate the small parking lot.

“Well, I guess this is goodbye for now,” Mana said tearfully. “Thank you for everything. I will be eternally grateful.” She ran up to Licht and hugged him tightly. “Be safe, okay? We have no idea what we’re getting into and there’s no telling what will happen to us.”

Surprise engulfed Licht’s face. He wasn’t used to being hugged so genuinely by someone who had been a complete stranger until just a few weeks ago. He was going to miss her physical presence.

“Licht,” Brendan walked up as Mana released her vice-grip hug, “be safe. We’ll be in touch once we get a little closer to the gate.” He gave Licht a hug of his own. “If you need us, don’t hesitate to get in touch.”

Tears began to well in Licht’s eyes. “Mana, thank you for being such a genuine person. Your resolve and determination have opened my eyes. I used to hide, trying to avoid the world. I didn’t think there were people like you still left out there.”

Noticing the tears in his eyes, “Licht, please don’t cry. You’ll make me cry. I need you to be strong for me, ok?”

Licht nodded. “Be safe, you two. I’ll support you here on my end as best I can. Now go. Go save Lacia. She needs you.”

Mana handed Licht a small piece of paper. “I know it’s kind of useless at the moment, but I’d like to get to know you better once this is all over. Besides,” she said, shuffling her feet in the snow, “I realized I never gave you my phone number.”

Licht smiled. It was a simple gesture, but it meant more than Mana could have imagined. “Sounds good!”

“I know goodbyes can be bittersweet, Brendan, but you don’t have to cry. It’ll be alright. We’ll see him again.”

Brendan sniffled from the cold, not yet fully warmed. “You just like to tease people, don’t you, Mana?”

She smirked. “You don’t have to hide your feelings around me. I promise you’re free to express yourself as you please.”

“I’m going to ignore you and let you handle the Leyliner,” Brendan said, clearly not amused by her teasing. “We should be there soon, right?”

“You’re real fun,” Mana pouted. “Yes, we should be there shortly.” She was happy she would finally get to reunite with her best friend. There was so much she wanted to tell her: Omnis, the memories, the earthquake–all of it.

They continued to glide across the snow covered roads, hovering mere inches above the surface as they sped along. The occasional road sign emerged from the snowscape. At least they knew they weren’t lost.

Mana began fidgeting with the Leyliner. “It was this switch, right?” she asked, as it transformed. “From my understanding, this thing functions by using the magical energy within the earth itself, but how does it transmit back?” She placed the Leyliner on her ear. A small chime let her know it was ready for use.

Mana handed the device back to Brendan so she could focus on the road, wherever it was, buried beneath the snow. The further north they went, the heavier the snow seemed to get.

“Licht? Can you hear me?” Brendan spoke into the Leyliner.

The device sprang to life, fully functional. A voice on the other end broke the silence.

“Wow. I really outdid myself with these things,” Licht said, his voice clear, and free of distortion. He was just as surprised as Brendan.

“I can’t believe these things work this far out. Can you see what we’re seeing?” Brendan asked.

“Well, either there’s a problem with the Leyliner or you’re looking at a white wall.” Licht sounded dissatisfied.

“In a way, you’re not wrong, but the snow has become so heavy out here it’s like looking at a white wall.” Another road sign passed on the right. The snow drifts were so high they nearly buried it. “We’re not far now.”

“I see,” Licht said, “or, don’t see. Regardless, I’m happy the Leyliner is functioning properly.” Brendan turned to face Mana so Licht could see her as well.

“Is that Licht?”

Brendan nodded. “Is there any way to share the audio link with another person?” Noticing the lack of verbal response, Brendan opened his mouth to ask again, but Licht cut him off. A small clink came over the Leyliner.

“There. Can you hear me, Mana?” His voice echoed inside her head. It was almost as if he was standing next to her.

“Yes, and you’re really clear,” she said. “I don’t suppose you can also see what I’m seeing, can you?”

“Not at the moment.”

“At the moment?” Mana and Brendan repeated simultaneously.

“If you funnel your mana into the Leyliner I can see what you see. You only need to use a small amount.”

Mana condensed a small amount of her mana, steadily feeding it into the device. She was already spent and using any more of the trickle she had left was reckless, but it was a necessary sacrifice. If she got separated from Brendan she doubted she could find him on her own. With her mana nearly depleted, she hated to think about what might happen if she got lost. “There. I can see what you see now, Mana,” Licht said.

“You’re right, it doesn’t take much, but I don’t have much.”

Their speed began to gradually decline as Mana cut back on her mana usage. They were still a couple minutes out, but that was a couple minutes worth of mana she didn’t have. Consciousness came and went for a brief moment, almost like she had momentarily fallen asleep. “We’re so close,” she muttered. “Just a little more…”

“Mana, stop here. We aren’t far. We’ll walk the rest, okay?” Brendan lightly tapped Mana’s cheeks as he tried to keep her awake. When did she lose enough consciousness for him to notice?

An orange shape dotted the horizon. It was maybe another half-mile out. “We’ll use that as a guide, then,” Brendan said, taking note of the deteriorating situation.

“I’m fine,” Mana said, teeth chattering.

“True, but your mana levels aren’t.”

“Very funny,” she said coldly. “I would slap you for that one if I weren’t so damn cold.”

Brendan took his coat off and folded it. He placed it on the ground, instructing Mana to sit down and rest. Realizing she wasn’t going to win the argument, she did as she was told.

“Just rest for a few minutes. I’m getting down there too, but you used waaay too much of your mana. I guess I shouldn’t have assumed you actually had enough to get all the way out here.”

“Sorry, I–” A metallic clanking sound echoed through the raging blizzard. “Did you hear that?”

“Yeah, and it was loud,” Brendan observed. “Do you think it could be–”

“Someone opening the border gate?” Mana finished his sentence.

“Do you see that orange thing?” It sounded like it came from somewhere around there.

She squinted, aimlessly searching the white canvas of snow for anything orange. “I think I see something. It’s definitely orange.”

“Hey, Licht? Do you think you could zoom in on that thing for me?”

“You sure do ask for a lot, you know? What do you think Leyliners are? Cameras?”

“Kind of?” he said, laughing. “I know you too well for you to leave out such an important feature. Besides,” he added, “why else would these things have a lens?”

Mana snickered. “You two are so cute, you know? Just ki–

Resoundingly, “NO!”