The Revelers (Serial 1)

Act 1 - Chapter 12: Mezos

I stare out the window of our upper story room inside the hollow spaces within The Great Tree, wondering about Ari. Somehow, she seems familiar to me. Her platinum white hair. Her dark beige skin. That organic eye with a verdant shade of green. Ari reminds me of another girl who I saw in some photos Samza and I gained from a hacking mission, except her eyes were red, not green. Mathilde's her name, I think. Perhaps Ari and Mathilde know each other, yet I don't recall any intel stating Ari had any brothers or sisters. In fact, Ari's bio on her WarGamesPedia site says she has no biological siblings.

I ask Samza, "Doesn't Ari remind you of someone?"

The rabbit fae bites her lower lip. "Kind of, but I think Ari looks older than that photo we found in that stashed of hacked documents. Anyway, do you think Ari is going to stick around?" Samza asks, her rabbit's ear drooping while the opposite brow raising in suspicion.

"Beats me," I say, adjusting my glasses, wondering the same thing. "She likes to ask a lot of questions. Though, I suppose it should come to no surprise to us."

"I know, right?" Samza blurts. "She's be snooping up in this joint. It's not a good sign."

"Considering that Ari has a bonding connection with Dr. Williams, I believe that there's a good chance she might say yes."

"You think so, bro?" Samza asks as she packs her holo-tablet and a bundle of computer cables in her backpack.

"I think so, Sam."

"Anyway, I gotta head to Rowynn's shop. I have a few projects I need to finish up."

"Have fun with it."

Samza brandishes her tablet from her backpack and lets out a wide grin. "As long I have this guy, I'm sure I'll have some fun with it." Then she departs on her rocket-powered skateboard and blasts out the door.

I figure I should head out, too. Maybe even catch up on my reading. I hop on my hover-scooter and proceed outside, enjoying the fresh breeze of the cool air.

The Great Tree is flourishing as ever. The leaves appear matte gold, and the sun is just a couple hours away from its apex. While riding around on my hover-scooter, I glance around and spot little pixie folk pulsating in neon hues of yellow, green, and pink, illuminating the scene like fireflies.

Just a distance, I spot Ari exiting the labs and entering the Great Tree's outer rim. Her lips pucker and her brows furrow, looking confused. She spent a lot more time than I expected at The Doc's office, so I guess the two had so much to share. The tall girl makes her way to a nearby bench, sits down, and browses the content stored on her tablet.

As I creep closer to Ari's back, I can hear her mutter to herself. I guess she enjoys reading aloud. I can tell since the words from her mouth match the words on the tablet's holographic screen. She's reading about the origins of The Four Crystalbearers. Rowynn Thoriana, the En'ari android who runs the Machinesmiths' Shop, is the first of the Crystalbearers. The other three are Magnhild of Ylfing, a Valkyr steam-axe berserker and Chieftain of the Ylfing Clan; Padraig Súilleabháin, a Reul-Sìthe fae born under the constellation of the Monkey, summoner of dead heroes, and our dad; and the late Farron Meteora, a human techno-mage healer and mother of Mr. V.

To date, only two of the four Crystalbearers are still alive, Rowynn and my dad. Magnhild of Ylfing sacrificed herself during The Ravage of Shadows and Light, when she, along with many Reul-Sithe fae warriors, like my mom, stayed behind to fight off Helayne's minions at The Great Tree of Esthial. The rest of the fae citizens ventured through The Great Fae Gate and teleported to this island. Farron, however, one of the original founders of The Remnants, died on this island from natural causes.