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Two girls are moving their hands through the air and speaking together in perfect parallel.
Two girls are looking expectantly at a circle of red chalk on their floor.
Two girls have done something exceptionally stupid.
Nick in Elcenia
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"I meant to help kill my ship."
"I've learned what I'll need to know, the circle's in progress, and you can't go along," she says. "If you'd rather not down the thing I could pick up from you how to bring it to a stop or anchor it or whatever it is you do, but if you want it killed it's all going to be handled."
"There's no safe long-term solution for me not being there, except downing it. Much as I regret throwing something as valuable as a ship away, it's not worth the risk. I don't suppose you could get my books off it first?"
"I can grab as many as I can carry," she says. "I'll bring a bag."
"Great. Thanks. You already know where they are." It's a statement, not a question.
"I'm just going to keep getting more and more nervous, don't mind me. Could I watch the circle-in-progress?"
"I'm just going to keep getting more and more nervous, don't mind me. Could I watch the circle-in-progress?"
"Yes. This way. You may want to leave your broken glider."
He leaves the broken glider and follows her. "Possibly a bad time to ask, but why green hair if you're going to dye it at all?"
"I don't dye it," she says, smiling over her shoulder.
She leads him to a dead-end little room at the far end of the hallway, tells it, "Headmaster's office!" and thereby causes it to lurch to the left, then up.
She leads him to a dead-end little room at the far end of the hallway, tells it, "Headmaster's office!" and thereby causes it to lurch to the left, then up.
He keeps his balance effortlessly despite the lurching. "Yay, magic."
"Don't try the stairs, by the way, they're badly enchanted."
After more lurching the door opens, showing an office where a man who looks like Korulen, down to the crazy ears, is drawing on the floor.
After more lurching the door opens, showing an office where a man who looks like Korulen, down to the crazy ears, is drawing on the floor.
"Don't try the stairs? How could badly enchanted stairs possibly be worse than trying to climb up the outside of the building or something?"
"They'll trap you until someone magics you out," says the green-haired lady. "I'm not saying you should scale the building, just stick with the lifts. This is my husband Kanaat, by the way. And I'm Keo."
"That is an undesirable quality in stairs, yes. Hello, Kanaat, Keo, I'm sure I'll be much happier to meet you once I'm not about to be the cause of a major accident."
"We'll take care of it," Keo assures him.
Nick alternates between watching Kanaat draw the circle and reading book titles.
The book titles mostly appear to be about magic.
He keeps reading the titles. His mind is too busy to properly form questions.
Eventually, Kanaat finishes the circle. Keo, holding a bag, stands in it. Kanaat performs a gesture and speaks words, and Keo disappears.
"She knows what to do. Damn, my hands are itching. I hate the idea of losing control of my ship. It's the worst thing an airman can do. She knows how to fix this."
"She's got your books," Kanaat says. "She's venting the gas now."
"...And you know this how?"
"We have a mindlink," Kanaat says.
"So, you're reading each others' minds?"
"Yes."
Nick lets out some kind of wordless noise. "Ugh. Tell me if she needs help or when she's done, please."