27 She Marched In; He Cried (1/2)
”Let's get the most important issue out of the way first. Would you mind telling us where you've been for the last three months?” asked Violett. She sat beside Reed and held him with a steely grip that bordered the line between a loving hug and a pro-wrestling grip.
Both Lu'um and Reed were escorted down to the deepest depths of the spire. They'd moved into what resembled a conference room that did not have any doors or windows. It was self-contained — it neither had an entrance nor an exit which left Reed confused.
Reed mused that the lady's physical prowess was still as overbearing as ever, despite her delicate appearance. Princess on the outside; Beast on the inside. Her formal title was well-warranted, he thought. He didn't like that he was being manhandled, but there was little he could do against the domineering maiden.
”With all due respect, Lady Violett, I'll be the one asking the questions here,” Axtorius asserted. He lifted his favorite mug and took a sip from it. His coffee had gotten cold, again. Once more, he heated the warm mug again. He scowled for a split second and then redirected his attention to the task at hand.
His hawk-like gaze shifted onto his vexatious disciple and said, ”Look, don't even think about starting with your bullshit, brat.” He shot a glance at the indifferent girl beside him and his eyes narrowed in suspicion. ”Something happened, right? You're not leaving this room until you tell us the truth. That's a promise.”
Reed groaned. What was he supposed to tell them? The actual truth? They would never believe it, he thought. Sure, he was confident that Axtorius and Violett had a certain trust in his words, but what happened to him was out of this world — in the most literal sense.
It'd be a troublesome tale to sell, even for Reed. He'd gotten himself into a variety of unexplainable situations that defied logic before, but this one took the cake. Unfortunately, he knew that if he lied about what happened, Axtorius would likely tear him a new asshole. Reed swallowed a glob of spit in fear and a cold sweat formed on his body.
Ah, screw it. I don't want to get my ass beat today, Reed thought. He'd the tell the truth, whether not they believed him. He decided that he wouldn't be responsible if they chose to be narrow-minded. The only thing he could do was hope that they trusted him enough, but that was a long shot.
Reed paused for a moment. He recollected the events that transpired after he got dragged into the void from the beginning until now and started his explanation.
Of course, he'd withheld what was likely the most significant detail of the story; how he came into contact with Lu'um and what her role in the story was at all. Reed recognized that this ommission would only raise Axtorius's suspicions, but he couldn't come up with a convincing lie at the moment. He was already stretching the truth as far as he could — which was a miracle of sorts.
For once since they'd met Axtorius and Violett, Lu'um spoke up and said, ”My name is Maya, and I met Reed when he warped out of the void, not too long ago.” She explained that she nursed him while he was unconscious after his return from the abyss. That she aided in him getting back on his feet and helped him on his quest back towards the spire.
What shocked Reed was that she didn't even bat a goddamned eye as she spilled out lie after lie. It was astonishing how adept she was at spinning falsehoods on the move — she was a genuine natural at it — that sent chills down his spine.
Who the hell was Maya? Nursed him back into health? Guided him back to the spire? Her lies had a hint of the truth, but were mostly gross exaggerations of what happened. It was an insidious way of camouflaging the truth; She twisted the facts and also combined them with clever lies to cover for the inconsistencies in her story.
The result: a far more convincing account of the events that occurred after Reed had returned from his three-month hiatus. In any case, Lu'um had cleared herself with a compelling alibi.
She was now a wandering contender who had bumped upon Reed when he was at his weakest and saved his life.
What a load of bullshit, he thought. He couldn't deny that it was a high-grade fabrication; he had to give respect where it was due. Reed felt a cold admiration of Lu'um's skill, that was for sure.
Axtorius and Violett went quiet for a long time after both of them finished giving their accounts. They both had pensive expressions as they looked at each other. What spoken about in this room could never leave these walls; that was what they both immediately thought. If even an iota of what they said was true, it'd spell catastrophe for everybody.
Axtorius looked at Reed and Lu'um with a grim face and coldly announced, ”This discussion never occurred, do I make myself clear? You warped into some obscure, isolated part of the North and it took you three months to find your way back. If anybody inquires you where you've been, this will be your story from now on.”
He looked at both of them with an intense gaze as his voice shifted an octave lower and he said, ”I will repeat myself once more. This. Conversation. Never. Happened. You got lost in the wilderness and Maya saved you. This is your new reality, henceforth.”
Reed flinched out of reflex and shook his head in acknowledgment. Maya had a somber mein as she nodded in approval. If that was what the old goat decided upon, that was how it would be. No further questions were needed.
Violett picked up where Axtorius had left off and said, ”For now, you'll re-enter your class. You've missed a sizeable portion of your training, but I had to be honest; it's meaningless for you given where you're at skill-wise. Not like it matters since the program is at its final stretch anyway...” She caught Reed and Lu'um like two sacks of potatoes and hauled them over her shoulders.
”I'll take these two and throw them into the class, what do you think?” she asked Axtorius, who in deep thought at the moment.
”… What? That sounds fine. You must forgive us, Maya, but we can't exactly let you leave the spire at the moment. We appreciate what you've done for Reed, but understand that you're in a precarious situation.”