In The Lands of Time

All I can see around me is the color green. For miles in every direction, the ground is carpeted in grass. There are a few trees dotting the landscape here and there, and a clear, sparkling stream meandering through the grass. In the distance, I see gently undulating hills which are covered, not just with grass, but with flowers that add a splash of color that makes everything seem fantastical.

A cool breeze ruffles my hair, the gentle rays of the sun caressing my skin as I take in the sights around me with my mouth slightly open.

Drew smiles gently as he takes in my expression."It's beautiful, isn't it?"

I nod dumbly."It is." I say to myself in a low voice. Then out loud."Where are we?"

"The Lands of Time."

"The Lands of Time?" I ask wondering why they put Time in its name. Does this place affect time somehow, or do they call it that for some other reason?

"They call it that because of its dilating effect on time. One second in the world is a minute here, a minute there is an hour here, and an hour there is close to three days here. This is the only place where we can talk without having to worry about time."

"Oh," I say. So it's straight to the business.

He makes a fist and moves his hand upwards. The ground rumbles as a bench formed from dirt rise from the ground. He then waves his hand and a puff of wind blows away the dust on the bench, leaving a brown crystal-like bench behind.

I rub a finger gently across the bench before looking at the finger. No dust. Some part of me is awed that someone could do what he just did. Suddenly, everything begins to feel like some movie that I am watching in 3D.

I look at Drew who motions for me to sit. I do and he follows.

For some time nobody speaks. I see him open and close his mouth a few times like he could not figure out how to start the conversation and I do nothing to help. I myself am trying to suppress the nervousness mixed with anticipation which is surging through me.

"Well," he says finally, "I don't really know where to start, but I first want to apologize for what Daniel did to you."

I grimace a bit as I remember. That horrible pressure on my mind, turning me into nothing more than a mindless pile of flesh.

Drew notices my expression."Trust me, he wasn't trying to hurt you, he just panicked when he realized that you remembered what happened."

"Really?" I ask disbelievingly. I might have believed him if I didn't remember the cold, expressionless face of the boy."What's the big deal anyway? Why is it so bad for me to remember that he had to do that?"

"I can't really tell you the reason why, but trust me when I say it was for your good and ours."

After that, another awkward silence descends. He keeps sneaking glances at me like he is expecting me to do something, but I don't know what he wants me to do. All of it just serves to make me more nervous.

He clears his throat."So… do you want to know what attacked you that night?"

Immediately I know what he was waiting for. He doesn't know that I know about the Fasuru and probably thinks I'll be curious about them. I panic. If I keep being uninterested he will know something is wrong, and if he acts on that knowledge he may find out about Tahku. I don't know why but the thought of Drew finding out about him scares me.

He looks at me expectantly and my mind goes blank as I try to think of what to say. As the seconds tick by, I get more and more panicked. If I don't talk soon he'll know something is wrong.

"Well...I just...why...why couldn't anyone see it?" The question pops out and thrilled that I had a valid question I push forward. "Everyone in the party only remembers a man with a gun, but instead I remember a beast. It doesn't make sense."

He is silent for a moment, then he shrugs. "I'm not really sure. Is there anyone in your family who could do...strange things?"

I think for a moment before shaking my head."I don't know." My grandma and grandpa died when I was still very young, and my dad had left us when I was ten, and since no one from his side of the family has ever visited us, I really didn't know. "Is it important to know?"

"Kind of. You see, for you to be able to see those things must mean you have magic. I mean everyone has magic but yours is activated. Well...not really activated but. Okay. Let me put it like this. Everyone has something called a core which allows us to absorb and use magic. The core is like a muscle, the more you use it the stronger it gets, the less you use it the weaker it gets. But its use is not restrained to a person but people and their generations. What that means is that if someone like your parents or grandparents found a way to make use of their core...."

I immediately understand what he's hinting at."Then I should be able to do the same."

"Something like that. Now, the thing is that normal people's cores are next to useless due to generations of neglect. So for you to be able to use magic and see those things -the Fasuru - must mean that–"

"–Someone in my family has magic." I am pretty sure no one on my mother's side of the family has magic. That only means that my father... Could that be part of the reason he left? It seems stupid but it's possible.

"Well, that's only one possibility."

I look at him in surprise."There are others?"

He nods."Two more in fact. One is that your core has too much potential. While the other is that someone opened it."

I ignore the rest of his words after hearing the second reason. The word potential caught my attention. Didn't the man say I had the greatest potential he had ever seen? At the same time, my mind is drawn to something Drew had implied.

"So basically, the only reason I can see it is that I can use magic. Is that what you are trying to say?"

"Well, it's a bit more complicated than that. But if you want things simple then yes. Either you used magic or someone used magic on you."

"What do you mean more complicated?"

"Okay. I personally believe the reason you can see the Fasurus is that you have great potential. That caused you to unintentionally absorb magic and open your eyes. If you try to do any other type of magic or even repeat seeing the Fasuru, you'll most likely fail."

"But as time goes by–"

"It doesn't work like that. As I said, it's a bit more complicated than that."

And then another silence ensues.

"So," I say finally."What next?"

He asks."What do you mean?"

"You obviously did all this for a reason." The man had said the Laen will want me because of my potential, and now I'm here with Drew who is answering all my questions. It would have been great if not for the fact that I know that they have wiped my mind before. They must have a reason not to do it again.

He doesn't answer immediately."Well, that can only be answered by the Masters. Their only instruction was to bring you to the Metorium."

The Metorium. The place where he had thought I would be safe from 'Taur. "What will happen when I get there?"

He shrugs."I'm not sure. The only things I can think of is that they'll wipe your memories again, or they might make you one of us."

"One of who?"

He looks at me. "The Laen. That's who I am part of. But the chances of that happening are really low. I've only seen it happen twice."

"So, when do they want to see me?"

"Today. We'll go immediately after school."

"What?"

He shoots me an apologetic glance. "I'm sorry, but we don't really have much of a choice. Anyway, it's time to go back to school."

At first, I want to argue, but then I realize he is right. I do not have much of a choice. If I refuse he could forcefully drag me all the way there and I would probably be unable to resist. It will be easier to just follow him there.

Slowly I nod."Okay."

As I speak, he suddenly seems to relax, as if he has finally finished a tasteless task. He gets up from the bench.

"Okay, let's go."