Chapter Text
“Ok,” Boyd took a deep breath as all four gathered around the obsidian box in the lab, “Open it.”
Luke opened the lid slowly, took out the stone, and placed it on the table.
“It takes a while for the body to actually grow,” Gareth pointed out bluntly.
"I know that,” Boyd snapped, “But it could still…do something.”
“He wouldn’t, actually,” Gareth glared at Boyd, “All his attention is focused on making his body.” Then he turned to Luke, with a notably more pleasant expression on his face, “Did you want me to try talking to it?”
“Sure,” Luke nodded, “Try to let it know that it’s safe, and we’re not a threat.”
“I’ll try…” Gareth looked skeptically at the stark white rock. He was fairly certain that this albite either wouldn’t believe him, or didn’t even know what safe meant anymore. But still, he placed his own stone next to the albite, and did his best.
You’re safe. We’re going to try to help you.
There was no response at first, as Gareth expected, but then, a scream suddenly tore through his mind and he immediately snatch his own core off the table.
“He’s not happy,” Gareth said, struggling to communicate exactly what he just experienced, “I don’t know if he understood what I was trying to tell him.”
“I see…” Luke picked up the albite in his hands, holding it firmly, “Can you try again later? Once he’s formed?” Gareth nodded. “Good…I’ll stay with him, until then. And maybe by that time some of it will be done…”
“It?” Boyd asked, raising an eyebrow.
“My idea! I’m going to need to use part of your lab but…I have an idea on how to help him. Will that be okay?”
“Alright,” Boyd sighed, “Just remember that once it…he…once he forms his body, he’ll be powerful, and could possibly destroy the entire lab in an instant, depending on the extent of his abilities.”
“I know…but…I don’t think he will. I really don’t. Not if we help him.”
“I hope you’re right.” Boyd said sternly, leaving Luke, Gareth, Mordred and the albite alone in the lab.
“Did you want me to stay and help?” Mordred asked, his voice flat, and no eagerness in his face.
“N-no,” Luke shook his head and took a step back, “You and Gareth can leave if you want. Technically I guess you don’t even have to stay in the lab. Did you want to try and find some remnants of your family?”
“Not really.”
“Alright…well you’re welcome to stay here. And if Boyd tries to get you to do work for him-“
“I’ll say no,” Mordred grinned, in a way that made Luke feel deeply uncomfortable for some reason. “I wanted to learn your language anyway, so I won’t always need Gareth with me.”
“Oh…right…the library’s yours then. And if Boyd-“
“Yeah, I won’t let him stop me,” Mordred chuckled, “Thanks M- uh, Luke.”
“Sure,” Luke smiled slightly, “And Gareth, I’ll probably need your help later-“
“Yeah I’m not leaving you alone with him, so it’s fine. I’ll stick around.”
“Thanks,” Luke scratched the back of his neck, not sure if he should be feeling insulted or not. Then, once the other two had left, he turned to the cloudy white stone cradled in his hands. “I know you’re been through a lot,” he whispered, knowing that the stone couldn’t hear him, but not caring either, “More than I could ever imagine. But I’m going to make everything better. I promise. You’ll be happy again.”
Luke didn’t let go of the albite once. Not while he slept, or while he ate. He stayed in the lab for two weeks, holding the stone, talking to it, and watching its body grow.
It was like a small, pale, white tree, with delicate branches that seemed like they could snap in a strong breeze. And suddenly Luke felt even more that he needed to protect this stone.
“You really didn’t get much, did you?” He muttered, reaching out slowly to the small structure, “Other stones get nice, strong bodies. They can move around. Talk. See. And you-“ Luke retracted his hand just before touching the stone’s body, realising how inappropriate that would be. “And I really have to get used to you, don’t I,” he sighed. “You look like you’re about done growing though, so once Gareth gets here, we’ll try to show you your surprise.”
Gareth, meanwhile, was sitting in the library with Mordred, utterly bored.
“You realise that anybody could help you read those books, right? My magic is only for people talking.”
“But I wouldn’t understand their talking," Mordred mumbled, “Besides…it’s nicer to stay with you.”
“You’re a human. You should get used to other humans.”
“Rocks are nicer,” Mordred shrugged, “At least when they’re not screaming. And you never scream.”
“I might if I have to be stuck in this library with you for any longer…”
“Then today is your lucky day!” Boyd swooped into the library, “Because your friend seems to have stopped growing. Which means I need you to go help my apprentice immediately so I can get my lab back.”
“Oh,” Gareth perked up at the mention of helping Luke, practically leaping from the chair he was laying on and rushing for the door. As he passed Boyd however, he paused, glaring at the scientist, “I don't care about you getting your lab back or whatever though. Luke’s probably making way better use of it than you would.”
“The response of a simpleton!” Boyd shouted after Gareth, rolling his eyes, then turning to Mordred, “Are you going to try to stab me again if I suggest another book for you?”
“You stabbed me first.”
“I had a reason.”
“So did I.”
“I don’t think ‘suggested a book you already read’ is a very good reason.”
Mordred looked up at Boyd, defiant for a moment, then his face fell. “I guess it isn’t…sorry.”
“It’s fine,” Boyd smiled warmly, “But I do think you’d learn more from this book here.” Boyd pulled another book from the shelf and gave it to Mordred. “It’s a story book. Not some dry textbook.”
“Oh…wait…with Gareth gone-“
“Turns out the language you and Merlin spoke is similar to an ancient form of another language still spoken in remote areas of the Kingdoms. It wasn’t too hard to cross-reference the texts and figure out a basic pronunciation. Then it was just a matter of learning it.”
“That…sounds like it was actually pretty hard,” Mordred smirked.
“Well, it would’ve been, if I wasn't a genius. Plus I had a lot of spare time with Luke taking over my entire lab.”
“I thought he just wanted a portion of your lab?”
“Any portion that isn’t nothing is too disruptive.”
“You’re really a lot like Merlin. Just not…you know…”
“Insane and sadistic?”
“Yeah.”
“Thanks kid,” Boyd ruffled Mordred’s hair, “I do try.”
When Gareth entered the lab, he found Luke, goggles on, taping, tying or gluing down everything he could.
“Ah, stay back for now!” Luke called out, “I think…I think his powers are limited to what he can sense, or maybe touch. And right now, that's the air. This entire room was a windstorm just moments ago. And I don't know if it’ll happen again, so wait until everything’s secured before coming in.”
So Gareth waited, and watched as Luke worked, carefully reaching into his pocket at every possible opportunity.
Finally, everything was secured, and Gareth walked down the steps to meet Luke.
“First of all, can you ask him to stop moving everything he touches?” Luke winced, “Make sure he knows that he’s safe here, so he doesn’t need to be hostile. Next, see if you can find out what the limits of his powers are, and how he can perceive what’s around him.”
Gareth nodded, and took the stone from Luke. But the moment it left Luke’s hand, a wind began to stir around them.
“Uhh maybe I should keep holding him,” Luke quickly took the stone back.
“Sure, here,” Gareth put his core into Luke’s hand as well, then tried again to reach out.
You’re safe.
h o w
The humans-
Another screech tore through Gareth’s mind, but he held on, just barely.
Please. Listen. They’re good humans. They want to help.
h o ww
I don’t know yet. But you need to stop trying to move everything.
c an t moV e musT m ov e things
You’ll be able to move. I promise. Just trust the humans. Trust this human.
wh A t huM an
The one who’s been holding you.
warm
Yes, he is warm. And he’s been keeping you warm.
it likes warm
Then trust him.
yes
Good. Can you answer some questions?
y es?
What things are you able to move?
kn own Things no t it
And what do you know right now?
a IR y ou warm human
The warm human’s name is Luke. Can you remember that? And I’m Gareth.
wi ll remem b er no t dU mB
Sorry…do you have a name?
n o
Do you want one?
n O
Why not?
i T lifE n O nam e
What does that mean? Gareth felt his own thoughts getting more and more jumbled. It seemed that this stone could only maintain coherent thoughts for a period of time. Or maybe it was getting upset. Either way, this conversation wouldn’t be sustainable for much longer.
no d ea th on ly liFe i t lif e
You’re saying that you are life?
y es
You ca- Gareth took a breath. Challenging this stone’s perception of itself too aggressively probably wasn’t wise. You’re like me. A stone who has a life inside of it. You can have a name.
nO nam e
Ok…no name then…for now. I’m going to go. But be kind to Luke.
it will
Gareth pulled his stone back, then looked at Luke. “He doesn’t have a name, and he says he doesn’t want one either. I think he likes you, or at least he likes how warm you are. And he agreed not to destroy anything. Also he can only move what he’s aware of. So the air, you, me when I was touching him. But he can’t move himself.”
“The ability to move the world, but he was still trapped under the ocean…” Luke squeezed the albite tighter, “Thanks Gareth. Will you be okay to talk to him some more?”
“Sure…in a bit. It’s hard talking to him. I don’t think he’s used to ordering his thoughts.”
“He wouldn’t be…” Luke sighed, “And that’s fine. You can help me with this in the meantime.”
Luke walked over to the large workbench in the middle of the room, where something large and bulky was covered by a cloth.
“What is it?” Gareth asked, leaning over.
“A body, or…the start of one,” Luke pulled the cloth off, revealing a skeleton of metal, wire and gears. “There’s still a lot I need to build but…I think I can hook up his coral body to it. He’ll be able to sense things through these wires…sort of. And he’ll be able to move around. The head is going to be complicated…especially the eyes. But Boyd was working on this weird thing that captures people’s images and makes instant paintings out of it so I think I can use some of that.”
“Wow…”
“I’m worried the process might hurt him a bit though, so once it’s prepped I’m going to need you to warn him.”
“Ok. What’s this?” Gareth ran his hand over an indentation in the partial body’s chest plate.
“That’s for his heart. Or…well….your stone is like your heart right? So…I thought it should go where the heart goes. And I’ll be building a casing for it, to keep it safe.”
“Oh…I hope this works.”
“Me too.”
It wasn’t long before Luke was ready to try and attach the coral to the fabricated body, so Gareth once again put his stone in Luke’s hand, and started to speak. But this time, he also showed the albite what Luke had made.
This is for you
wh a t
It’s a body. Luke made it. We can put your body in it, and teach you how to move it. Then you’ll be able to move.
a nd d i e?
No! No…you’re not going to die
it wants to die move to die
This will make living good. You won’t want to die.
it dies
Try living. Please.
There was no response, and Gareth was scared. The albite really did seem to want to die. And he didn’t blame it. But what Luke had made…it was incredible. And he was certain the albite would be happy once he learned how to use it.
y es
The albite finally responded, to Gareth’s relief, so he showed him more images of the body. You’ll fit into here. And we’ll put your core here. It might hurt a bit though, so try not to get upset and start moving things.
p ai n n othi ng if warm
Oh…ok…that’s good. Luke will hold you the entire time then.
yes
“He’s ready,” Gareth told Luke. “But…he wants to die.”
“What?!”
“He…he only wants to be able to move so he can kill himself. I think. He said he’d give this body a chance but…be careful.”
“I guess…if I had lived for so long like that, I might want to die too…But this will be a whole new life for him! He’ll change his mind once he’s in the body, I know it.”
“I think he will too,” Gareth smiled, “So…where do we start?”
The process of embedding the coral into the artificial body was slow, and delicate. Gareth checked in with the albite from time to time, making sure he wasn’t in too much pain. Then, as they started to connect the wires, Gareth would check that the albite could sense them, and what was at the other end of them.
Finally, it was done.
Gareth asked the albite to try moving, but that resulted in little more than flailing and twitching limbs.
“I forgot how complicated even a wave hello is,” Luke sighed.
“I can keep trying to teach it to move,” Gareth offered, “Especially since I don’t need sleep. Then you can keep working on his head.”
“Really? I mean…that’d be great but…you don’t have to. This was never your project to being with and-“
“He’s…like an old friend. Sort of. I want to see him happy.”
“Then we’ll make him happy,” Luke patted Gareth on the back as he yawned. “Now…this head.”
“You should sleep.”
“I’ll be fine.”
“I could call Boyd.”
“Ugh…alright, I’ll go sleep. But just for a bit.”
And so Luke went to sleep on the small cot he kept in the lab, still holding both the albite, and Gareth’s diorite tightly in his hands.
“You building him a body is one thing, but now you want to cannibalise all my imaging experiments?” Boyd looked at Luke in horror. He had come to check on Luke’s progress, but was certainly not expecting for Luke to demand the use of his ongoing work.
“I need him to be able to see.”
“Can he even walk.”
“When I woke up this morning, Gareth had him take three steps!”
“And then what.”
“He fell over. But that’s still a huge improvement!”
“What about communication?”
“Once he has eyes I can teach him to write.”
“Or, you give him ears, and you can start talking to him.”
“I want him to see."
"And I want my inventions to stay in one piece.”
“What’s more important? Rich people getting to see their own faces faster, or giving sight to the blind?”
“Tch- don’t word it like that, you’re making me feel bad,” Boyd scowled.
“That's the point.”
“Fine. But then I expect your knowledge of the technology to be so magnificent that you can give me a working prototype as a replacement in under a week.”
“Thank you!” Luke grinned as he hugged the stiff, uncomfortable Boyd.
“Please don’t do that. And those glass lenses cost more than you could ever hope to make so don’t break anything!”
“I won’t!” Luke grinned, then rushed over to Boyd’s bench where he began to disassemble the partially-completed prototypes.
“So,” Boyd approached Gareth, who was looking over the body, which was back to laying on the workbench. “How is he? Mentally speaking?”
“Luke? Or the albite?”
“Both.”
“The albite is…confused. Sometimes, he thinks he’s life itself, like he’s some sort of deity. Other times, he acts almost like a child. And he still always wants to die. And Luke…I don’t know. He’s so hopeful. But I’m worried.”
“So am I,” Boyd rubbed his temples, “Listen, I know you don’t particularly like me. But I don't take that personally. Honestly, nobody really likes me except for Luke. And apparently Mordred now…strange kid. Anyway. I know you don't like me, but can I ask a favour?”
“You can ask,” Gareth scoffed.
“See our sense of humour is so similar, we really ought to get along."
"Just ask already.”
“Try to reign in Luke’s hopefulness. If you can. He’s so optimistic…he always has been. He’s been my apprentice for years and he’s never once been affected by my carefully crafted dour and cantankerous demeanour. So just…give him a dose of reality when you can. If this fails, I’m worried it’ll crush him.”
“I can do that,” Gareth nodded slowly, “But I really do think he’ll succeed.”
“I have no doubt in his technical prowess,” Boyd said thoughtfully, “What I’m worried about, is whether our pale little friend will ever be able to exist as Luke wants him to.”
“If anyone can help him, Luke can.”
“I think that’s something we can both agree on,” Boyd smiled sadly for a moment, then left lab, pausing only for the briefest of moments at the top of the steps to look at his apprentice. He’s never seen him so excited, so full of life. I hope you never experience what it’s like to have that ripped away.
“How’s the reading coming?” Boyd found Mordred in the library, as usual.
“This story’s really interesting! Thanks for recommending it!”
“Sure,” Boyd shrugged, then slumped down into a reading chair in the corner, looking thoughtfully at nothing.
“Is Luke’s thing working yet?”
“Somewhat.”
“That’s great!”
“Yeah.”
“What’s wrong?” Mordred looked up from his book, then dragged a stool next to Boyd and sat down.
“Nothing,” Boyd smiled bitterly, “Just remembering something.”
“Something bad?”
“No, something wonderful.”
“Did you want to talk about it?”
“Not particularly.”
“Hmm, ok. I’ll keep reading here then, just in case.”
“He says he wants to try something,” Gareth said suddenly, while walking the albite around the lab.
“He does?” Luke looked up in excitement.
“Yeah, I’ve been showing him images of you and Boyd and the lab and he said he got an idea. Well…he sort of said that. The way he talks is still really awkward.”
“Alright, well, let him try it!”
“Oh…he’s asking if you can give him his head.”
“It doesn’t work yet,” Luke frowned.
“He doesn’t care. He said ‘head needed for movement’. Whatever that means.”
“O-ok…one sec,” Luke quickly put the head he was working on back together, then properly attached it to the body. “Can you ask him to move it? To test?” Gareth nodded, then almost immediately, the body’s head began to move around. Awkwardly at first, but eventually it could smoothly rotate and tilt like any organic body could.
“He’s going to try it now. And…he said ‘it has thanks’. So…I think he’s saying thank you?”
“He- augh!”
The body suddenly lurched forward, wrapping its metal arms tightly around Luke, and squeezing, very hard, with its head resting on Luke’s shoulder.
“It’s…” Luke struggled for air, “Giving me…a hug?”
“Seems so,” Gareth smiled, barely holding in his laughter, “I think he saw you thank Boyd with a hug and wanted to try it.”
“Can you tell him…that he’s hugging a bit too hard? I think my ribs are about to break.”
“Sure,” Gareth laughed again, and the albite’s hug loosened.
“You’re really grateful, huh?” Luke wiped some tears from his eyes as he ran his thumb over the stone in his hand.
“He says he likes that. Also don’t move your hand so much when you’re holding me, it’s weird.”
“Oh…right…sorry…So…if he’s thankful, does that mean he doesn’t want to die anymore?”
“He says yes. And…he’s sorry if he hurt you.”
“I'm alright," Luke laughed softly, more tears falling from his eyes as he carefully stroked the stone again, this time making sure Gareth’s was left untouched. “If he wants me to finish his head though, he’ll need to let go.” The mechanical body let Luke go almost instant, and Luke carefully detached the head, then went back to work, smiling occasionally as he glanced over at the walking lessons.
“Boyd!” Luke burst into Boyd’s office. “He hugged me!”
“Congratulations,” Boyd drawled, “Should I prepare the wedding invitations?”
“Not yet. But I think I’ll be able to give him eyes tomorrow and then he’ll be able to start writing and-“
“I do hope you realise that I was being sarcastic. But I’m glad your experiment is going well.”
“And he’s getting better too! He says he doesn’t want to die anymore!”
Boyd raised an eyebrow, “And you believe him?”
“Of course! Why wouldn’t I?”
“Because people can’t be trusted. And insane ancient stones who spent 6000 years at the bottom of the ocean can be trusted even less. Don’t let your guard down.”
“Gareth would know if he’s lying, I think.”
“Hmm, possibly. In any event, best of luck with giving your friend eyeballs. I look forward to seeing which of my inventions you’ll take apart to give him ears.”
“That thing you use for recording aggressively sarcastic voice messages to play to people who ring our doorbell.”
“Ah, the vocali- wait I was joking! That’s an extremely delicate and import-“
“More important than giving-“
“Ugh.” Boyd slid down in his chair, throwing his arms up in exasperation, “Yes, yes, your friend is more important than my petty schemes. I get it. Fine. Disassemble my entire life’s work so that our dear albite can experience the full misery of human existence.”
“Thanks!” Luke grinned, immediately dashing out of Boyd’s office.
Then, once he was alone again, Boyd opened his drawer, pulled out a small wooden box, and stared at the kunzite shards inside. “You never found it miserable though, did you?” he sighed, “You would’ve liked him, I bet.”
it didn’t understand
at first, it wanted death
movement for death
but this human was so warm
and good
it didn’t want death
but it still wanted to move
what did that mean
it thanked the human
thanking is what one does for someone who makes one happy
that is what the other stone had told it
did that mean it was happy
it wasn’t sure
happiness was confusing
everything was confusing
but it liked the human
Luke
Luke was warm
Luke was good
“Ok, I think…” Luke looked over his work for a third time, “I think it's ready. I’m going to attach the head now.”
Gareth nodded, then told the albite what was about to happen.
He’s going to reattach your head. It should let you see. Like all the images I’ve been showing you. But on your own.
i t will se e Luke?
Yeah. And the lab. And me.
b ri ght?
Yep. There’s lots of lights in the lab, so it’ll be pretty bright.
good
“He’s excited, I think,” Gareth told Luke, “You can go ahead.”
Luke nodded, and with slightly shaking hands, began to connect the mechanical head to the body. It took some time, with everything having to be double checked, and triple checked. But eventually, it was ready.
“Once he opens his eyes,” Luke said nervously, clenching the stones in his hand tightly, “He should be able to start seeing right away.”
And right on cue, the eyes opened.
it saw
it saw light
it saw things
so many things
confusing things
it was scared
it didn’t understand
it saw Luke
The moment the albite’s eyes fixed on Luke, they didn’t look anywhere else.
“Hi…” Luke smiled awkwardly.
Luke moved
was Luke speaking?
Luke smiled
it was good
it made Luke smile
Then Luke was being hugged again. Softer this time, but the albite also showed no signs of letting go.
“Should I tell him to stop?” Gareth asked.
“No,” Luke said softly, while smiling, “He’s probably just trying to cope with all these new things.”
Gareth nodded. He didn’t know what the albite was thinking right now. He didn’t ask. Whatever was happening right now, he felt like he was very much not supposed to be a part of it.
When the albite eventually let go, Luke continued to smile at him, then showed him the ink and paper he had prepared.
“These are letters,” he said, gesturing to a large book he had found in Boyd’s library, one meant to help teach children to read, “You use them to make words.”
“He knows that,” Gareth said, after communicating Luke’s words to the albite, “He wants you to know that he’s not dumb.”
“Alright,” Luke laughed, “But these letters are probably different from the ones you knew. So we’ll go through them one by one.”
“He says he wants a name!” Gareth said excitedly, “He’s asking if he can write it himself.”
“O-of course!” Boyd hurriedly prepared a quill with ink, “Go ahead. Uhm…write anything you want.”
The albite struggled with the delicate control needed to write. But eventually, he managed to reproduce on letter, then put the quill down.
S
“That’s what you want your name to be? Really?”
“He…sounds proud of it,” Gareth smiled, “I think he likes it.”
“Ok then,” Luke put a hand on S’ shoulder, “S it is. Now Gareth’s going to keep teaching you reading and writing, and I’m going to work on some ears so that we won’t constantly need him to talk.”
And that’s exactly what he did. And two weeks later, they were able to have their first conversation — Luke spoke while S wrote, and Gareth was finally able to leave them alone.
“So you can hear me?”
yes
“That’s great! And you can still see me?”
yes
Luke is cry again
“Ah…I know…I’m sorry,” Luke wiped his cheeks, moving away slightly so he wouldn’t get S’ paper wet. “I’m just really happy.”
S is happy too
S warm now
“Yeah, you are. Do you mind me always holding your stone? I was doing it before just to calm you down but…if you’d rather I didn’t..."
no
Luke warm
keep heart
“Oh! You’ve started calling it your heart now.”
gareth said Luke said it is
“Yeah…I did say that…Oh! You should really meet Boyd. I couldn’t have built this body for you without him. And Mordred too.”
no
just Luke
“I guess it is still kind of early for you to interact with others…We’ll take it slow then.”
when S speak
“Soon! I just need to mess around with Boyd’s weird lab-to-office communication system…”
who boyd
“Did…did Gareth not explain that?”
gareth said boyd annoying
“Of course he did,” Luke sighed, “He is kind of annoying. But he taught me everything I know. And he’s a good friend.”
boyd and Luke friends?
“Yep. He’s helped me a lot. I really rely on him.”
S and Luke friends?
“Yeah,” Luke felt tears fall from his eyes again as he gripped S’ arm, “We’re definitely friends.”
boyd and S friends then
“I’d like that,” Luke smiled, “We can all be friends.”
Luke kept talking to S as he worked. He had been keeping Boyd and Mordred out of the lab since giving S his eyes, too worried that they might startle him. And with Gareth no longer needed for translating, he got used to it just being the two of them.
They talked about everything. At least, Luke did. He spoke of the world, of its history. S asked some questions about himself, and where he came from, and Luke did his best to answer. S didn’t seem to like most of the answers, but he accepted them.
And slowly, S’ writing got smoother, and he was almost unrecognisable from the chaotic stone that Gareth had previously described. Luke couldn’t be happier with his progress. And when he had finally fitted him with a mouth, he also finished the outer shell of S’ body — complete with clothes, skin, hair, and a specially-protected compartment for S’ heart.
“There,” Luke smiled, “You could pass as a human now. Or a human-shaped stone.”
S looked down at his body, his arms, his hands, then he turned to the mirror Luke had brought out. He remembered how Gareth had taught him to speak, and he did his best to make his tongue and mouth move in the same way.
“This is…new S?” he asked, attempting a smile.
“This is…just S,” Luke smiled back, “You’re still in there. All of you.”
“No!” S turned around, suddenly angry, “That not S. That is…monster. Bad. Not S.”
“It’s okay,” Luke put his hands on S’ shoulders, “It’s okay for that to be part of you. It’s in the past now.”
S nodded, “If Luke says so, S will believe Luke.”
“Good,” Luke smiled, “Did you want to meet Boyd and the others now? And you can finally leave the lab too.” Luke took S’ hand gently in his, and S squeezed it back.
“Yes. S go with Luke to meet friends.”
Luke guided S up the steps, and after not finding Boyd in his office, he took him to the library, where he found Boyd, Mordred and Gareth all gathered.
“Oh,” Boyd said flatly as he stood up, “So…you’re S?”
“Yes,” S nodded as he looked around nervously.
“Can you feel pain?” Mordred asked, earning him a sharp glare from Boyd.
“Yes.”
“How are you feeling?” Gareth asked.
“Confused.”
“He’s seeing a lot for the first time,” Luke explained, squeezing S’ hand a little more, “But he’s able to move and interact with the world just like everybody else now.”
“It’s dark,” S said, as his body began to shake.
“There’s less lights in here,” Luke said softly, “But it’s okay, it’s still safe.”
“Cold.”
“Ah…yeah it can get a bit draf-“
“Luke,” Boyd suddenly looked very angry, “Get him back to the lab.”
“But-“
“Luke,” Boyd tilted his head at S, who was not only shaking, but the stack of books next to him was as well. “Get him out of here. Now.”
“R-right,” Luke tugged on S’ hand, “Come on, we’ll get you back to the lab where it’s warm and bright.”
“No!” S shouted, pulling his hand back as the books around the room began to fly, “Stop! Don’t touch it! Leave it! Bad thing!”
“That's how he used to talk,” Gareth said hurriedly, “Luke hold his stone. That might calm him down.”
Panicked, Luke reached into S’ chest, pulling out the stone and holding it tightly in its hand. “It’s okay S. You’re with me. On land. You’re S. Remember?”
“Of course I remember,” S scoffed, “I’m not dumb.”
“No,” Luke smiled, “You’re not. So let’s get back to the lab.”
And back in the lab, Luke noticed that S had managed to tear and break apart parts of his body. So, doing his best not to think much about what just happened, and holding S’ heart still in his hands, he made repairs.
“This will never work,” Boyd said, still standing in place in the library, his lips pressed into a hard line.
“You don’t know-“
“He’s right,” Gareth sighed, “He almost completely relapsed into turning the library into a storm. Maybe he’ll get better at controlling it, but he’ll always be at risk of…that.”
“But Luke-“
“Luke will die,” Boyd hissed, “And when he does, nobody will be able to control S.”
“Wouldn’t S want to kill himself too then?”
“I don’t think so,” Gareth shook his head, “He really started to value the life that Luke gave him. He’d insist on keeping it for Luke’s sake.”
“And S will always be a risk,” Boyd said, his voice starting to shake now, “Luke can only do so much for him before he goes outside and immediately exposes himself as not only a stone, but a dangerous one. And then he’ll be cut. Or worse.”
“What can we do? Kill the government?” Mordred asked with disturbing innocence.
“You can’t just kill the government,” Gareth sighed with exasperation.
“Technically, you can,” Boyd smirked, “It’s just very difficult. And sadly, it’s a bit out of my area of expertise.”
“Then what…”
“Then we wait,” Boyd choked back some tears, “We wait until Luke needs us. Then we’ll be there for him.”
“And if S needs us?” Gareth asked.
“Then we’ll be there for him too.”
“Sorry…” S hung his head as Luke worked.
“It’s okay, it was your first time out of the lab.”
“S is still a monster…”
“No,” Luke smiled up at S, “You’ve just got more to learn, more to get used to. That’s all.”
“Luke’s friends were angry…”
“They were worried, that’s all…and you’re all better,” Luke finished by putting S’ stone back in its compartment, “And you should get used to me not holding your stone too. I won’t always be there.”
“Why not?”
Luke stared. This wasn’t a question he was prepared to answer. He had just assumed S knew that humans died eventually. “Things happen,” Luke managed, “And…I might just be busy one day, or have to go run an errand. It’s important to be able to exist on your own too.”
“I understand.”
“You used ‘I’,” Luke grinned proudly.
“I did! S is- I am, learning from talking with Luke.”
“You don’t have to always say my name either.”
“I like Luke’s name.”
“If you say so,” Luke laughed, “Did you want to try a board game or something? Boyd has…a lot actually. It’ll be fun and you can take your mind off things.”
“Fun?”
“Yeah, fun. Doing something because it’s enjoyable.”
“Oh! Yes, I’d like fun.”
“Great.”
Days passed, and slowly S got used to moving around Boyd’s house. He still avoided the library, but the other rooms he was able to handle without incident. He also didn’t like being alone with Mordred, but Luke couldn't exactly blame him for that.
Then one day, Luke woke up to find S pacing in front of his room.
“What’s wrong?” he asked.
“Can't move!” S shouted, “It can’t move! It’s stuck!”
Luke felt himself panic, but did his best to stay calm. S had been speaking normally just last night, how was he back to this so suddenly? “You’re moving right now S! You’re moving!”
“No!” S looked to his side, shattering the window at the end of the hallway, “Move! It needs to move!”
“Oh! Oh you want to go outside! Ok, calm down,” Luke reached into the compartment for S’ core, putting his hand over the stone, “We can go outside today, alright? I’m sorry you were feeling trapped in here.”
“It’s ok…S is sorry…”
“I know you are,” Luke smiled, pulling S into a hug, “I’ll get changed, then we can go to the market for breakfast.”
“You’re not going,” Boyd stood in front of the door.
“Yes,” Luke insisted, “We are.”
“He still stands out too much.”
“He can’t be here anymore, he’s feeling trapped.”
“Well I’m sorry that my mad scientist’s salary can’t afford a spacious manor, but that doesn’t change the fact that he’s not ready to go out in public.”
“It’s still early in the morning,” Luke pressed, “As evidenced by the fact that you haven't gone to bed yet. The market should be-“
“You’re going to the market?!” Boyd raised his voice, and in a frantic manner that Luke had never seen before. “Absolutely not! A stroll around the neighbourhood is one thing but the market is far too dangerous.”
“We’ll be fine,” Luke pushed past Boyd, “Just calm down.”
“Whatever,” Boyd scowled, crossing his arms, “Just be careful.”
“I won’t let anything happen to Luke,” S smiled reassuringly.
“I know you won’t,” Boyd winced, wishing that was all he had to worry about.
“So bright,” S smiled as he looked up in the sky, “And big…I remember…I remember this…”
“From when you first communicated with Gareth?” Luke asked, gently guiding S in the direction of the nearby market.
“Mhm. It’s different though. So many buildings…smoke…”
“Makes sense, Gareth probably wouldn’t have seen a city like this one so long ago.”
“What’s the market like?”
“Usually it’s pretty crowded, but it should be almost empty right now. But there’s lots of stalls with food and other interesting things. You’ll like it.”
And as they continued their walk, S didn’t stop marvelling at everything they passed. Luke was glad that, as predicted, the streets were effectively empty. While S didn’t stand out much visually, his awe and wonder at seeing birds for the first time definitely did.
Finally, they arrived at the market. There were a few people bustling around, but it too was quiet. Luke got himself some breakfast and a tea, then they found a bench to sit at.
“Feeling better?” he asked.
“Yes,” S nodded, “What is eating like?”
“Uh…nice, I guess? Sometimes it’s annoying, cause I’d rather be working. But eating good food can be refreshing.”
“Oh…and what’s that?” S pointed at Luke’s tea.
“Iced tea. It’s like the coffee Boyd and I drink, but more soothing and not as strong. Also it’s cold, not hot.”
“And I can’t have that either?”
“No,” Luke shook his head, “I didn’t design your internals to survive ingesting foods or liquids. Sorry…”
“It’s okay,” S shrugged, “Gareth didn’t know what food was either, when he was teaching me. So I don’t miss it.”
“Is that what makes you upset the most? Missing things that you first learned from Gareth?”
“Hmm…maybe.”
“What else are you missing?”
“Nothing now, I think,” S turned to Luke with a smile, “I’m happy now. I can move, see the sky. And I’m warm. And I have Luke.”
“You do,” Luke smiled back, “Do you…think about back then much?”
“No. It’s…bad.”
“Yeah…I guess so. But you don’t have to think about it, right? You can just think about right now. And the future.”
“Yes,” S grinned, then went to hug Luke. But the sudden movement cause Luke’s tea to spill.
“Oh, sorry I-“
“Wet,” S hissed, “It’s wet…cold…”
“Oh no, S, it’s fine, calm down-” But suddenly Luke found himself on the ground, and things around him were beginning to shake.
“It won’t be cold again! Wet again!”
The droplets of spilled tea started flying off S, but they were going so fast, and were so small, Luke felt his cheek get sliced by one.
“S! Please!” But it was no use, Luke couldn’t get to S, and people were already starting to pay attention.
Just then, some fireworks went off. And the market was suddenly filled with smoke as a large, strange bicycle came tearing through the street.
“So sorry everyone! Just a little experiment gone haywire! Don’t worry!”
Luke looked up as he recognized Boyd’s voice, and before he knew it, he and S were tossed into a wagon behind Boyd’s strange bicycle, and were on their way home, amidst more errant fireworks and random, shouted explanations from Boyd.
S was still panicked, but at least he had been shocked long enough for Boyd to reach for his stone, and he was no longer flinging things around.
Once they got home though, Boyd made it very clear that none of this was okay.
“You’re lucky I was following you!” He shouted, “I can’t just show up with my ditzy inventor routine every time he has a problem you know!”
“He didn’t mean-“
“I know he didn’t mean it! Of course he didn’t mean it! But it still happened. It’s spilled tea today, and what will it be tomorrow? A sudden rain storm? A cloud that decides to cover the sun? An ill-timed reference to the ocean? No more going outside. That’s final.”
“I am sorry,” S practically collapsed, and Luke saw that once again, he had damaged some of his body.
“It’s fine, it’s fine,” Luke cried, holding S up, “You’ll get better…”
“No he won’t!” Boyd screamed, “He won’t get better! Do you realise what he’s been through?! You don’t just get better from that! Not in a handful of months especially! It’ll take a lifetime at least, maybe two! Or three!”
“Please,” Luke pleaded, “Give him another chance. We can move out into the country or-“
“So he can wreak havoc on the wildlife? Or whatever unfortunate merchant comes by the house? No! Leaving the city won’t made his trauma disappear, Luke.”
“Just one chance. That's all I’m asking. In one year, we’ll try going out again. And if he still can't handle it, then he’ll stay inside.”
“One year,” Boyd relented as he closed his eyes, “One year, then we never have this conversation again. And…and if he can’t handle it, I promise you I’ll sell whatever I have to, and we’ll get a big house where he can feel safe. But he’ll never leave it. Okay?”
“Okay…” Luke squeezed S’ hand, “Will you be okay with that?”
“Yes,” S nodded, “I’ll…be better at being inside.”
“Good,” Boyd let out a breath he had been holding, “I’ll be in my office.”
“I’m sorry Luke…” S leaned against Luke as soon as Boyd left, “I just…wanted to hug you.”
“And there’s nothing wrong with that. Accidents just happen sometimes. Now let’s get you cleaned up.”
“Luke…?” S asked as Luke was working on his repairs.
“Yeah?”
“Why did you help me?”
“Because…it seemed like the right thing to do.”
“Boyd thought so too, and so did Gareth, but they don’t treat me like you do.”
Luke smiled without looking up, “I think…you just ended up meaning a lot more to me. You’re my best friend, S.”
“Really?”
“Mhm. At first I just…was worried about you. But…I don’t know…I felt connected to you, and I wanted you to live. You became really important to me. You’ve made me really happy.”
“And Luke makes S really happy,” S grinned.
“I’m glad.”
“When Luke’s done…can we play a game?”
“Of course.”
walls
darkness
floor
ceiling
cold
wet
windows wet
it’s confused
it’s alone
it’s cold
Mere months later, a terrible thunderstorm hit. The midday sky was darkened with clouds, and rain started to come down heavily, pelting the windows as Luke, Boyd and the others scrambled to turn on the lamps.
But nobody could find S.
S was gone.
Then Luke saw a window had been smashed, with footsteps in the muddy ground below.
“Oh no, oh no, oh no…” Luke ran outside, not bothering to put on his jacket, Boyd hurrying along behind him, shouting. But Luke couldn’t make out what he was saying.
Luke found S in the town square, surrounded by a mess of debris moving chaotically around him.
“S!” Luke cried out, fighting against two storms, “Come back! It’ll be okay!”
“Sea is above! Coming down! Must be stopped!”
“It’s just rain! You’ve seen rain before! Please!”
“NO!” S screamed as he hurled things into the sky, as though trying to attack the clouds. Then Luke noticed the crowd. Some looking out their windows, some standing in doorways. But S saw them too. “AWAY! NO LIFE! NO PAIN!” And to Luke’s horror, S started pulling people from their windows.
“Luke,” Boyd startled Luke as he grabbed his arm, “Here." Boyd shoved an obsidian box into Luke’s hands. “You have to.”
“No!” Cried Luke, “I don’t!”
“Yes. You do.”
Luke stared up at Boyd, pleading for an alternative, but he knew there wasn’t one.
So he walked, then crawled, then, as he approached the chaos that was S, he was all but dragging his body across the ground until he reached him.
“I’m sorry,” he sobbed, grasping onto S as he pulled himself up, “I promise you, I promise I’ll find a way…eventually.” And Luke pulled the albite from S’ chest, putting it into the obsidian box. The body instantly collapsed, and everything that had been in the air fell to the ground.
And so did Luke.
“You had no choice,” Boyd whispered, struggling to pick up his sobbing apprentice, then motioning for Gareth, who was standing in the distance, to collect the shell of a body.
Two weeks later, Luke stared at the delicate coral on the floor of his room. The body that he had built was destroyed in the incident, and with Boyd selling everything off to fund their move, he hadn’t been able to reconstruct it.
Still, Luke held the stone tightly in his hand. Repeating his promise. Knowing that S couldn’t hear him. Knowing every second that passed made things worse. But still, refusing to give up. Still knowing that at least, he could keep S warm.