Ness

“Come on you slowpoke!” Ness shouted to Lynn, “Wasn’t this your idea anyways?”

“Yeah, yeah” Lynn grumbled back as he huffed deep breaths and followed Ness along the thin serpentine path uphill through the jungle. Ness sympathized a bit with Lynn’s struggle, after all, it had been a long day for both. Still, the news she’d gotten from her father right after the graduation ceremony instantly refilled the energy supplies that were eaten up by a long day of school officials giving speeches, students receiving important looking certificates, and teachers saying tearful goodbyes to the graduating class of 607. Lynn had invited her up to this specific scenic overlook and Ness thought it was a great idea. After all, we’ll soon be embarking on a great adventure! More importantly, Lynn had mentioned he’d procured a “surprise” from his father’s liquor cabinet.

A handful of minutes later, the dense foliage broke up and the ground underfoot changed from the rich and dark jungle topsoil to solid, gray rock. Ten meters ahead was the sheer drop of a cliff, one of many on the island, and it faced west: perfect for watching the sun set over the ocean. Ness sat down, a couple meters from the edge and leaned against a small, sun-warmed boulder. Judging by the sun we’ve got… she stretched out her arm and measured the sun’s distance to the horizon with her fingers, 15 minutes until the sun starts to set.

Small pebbles and rocks crunched, and Ness looked to her left to see Lynn settling down in a similar spot. Looking at him now, she could still see the enthusiastic boy she’d met all those years ago in diving school. As he looked onto the sea and the sun, a smile crossed his face, before he turned to her. Ness was looking at him expectantly.

“Alright, let’s see it Mr. Surprise” Ness said, and Lynn’s smile transformed into a conspiratorial grin. He reached for his backpack, unclasped the straps, reached in, and paused.

“You sure you’re ready?” Lynn asked with a mock-serious expression. She just rolled her eyes. Then, with a flourish, Lynn presented his prize: A short and squat bottle filled with a translucent white liquid. The bottle was clearly expensive, as thin rings of gold paint adorned it along with a finely drawn label. Even more telling were the small gold flakes suspended inside the liquid, now swirling about in a wild dance.

Ness made an impressed whistle and commented, “My, my, that’s quite the catch there Mr. Declan, are you sure your father won’t miss it?”

“Nah, no way. I swear, the ‘great patriarch’ has no clue of half the things in his basement.” Lynn lied while pouring out two glasses and proffering one to her. Ness accepted the glass and held it in her hand for a thoughtful moment, deciding on what she should toast to.

“To the future” Ness said, and Lynn echoed it back. Drinks clinked and each took a small sip. Ness was pleasantly surprised by the flavor. She was no stranger to harder drinks, but this was different. The strong, burning undertone of high proof alcohol was still there, but unlike the cheap stuff she’d had at parties, this didn’t immediately have her looking for something else to wash the flavor away with. She sighed appreciatively, and looked over the ocean, enjoying the companionable silence.

Ness thought about her past; the things she’d done. Diving school. Competing in the JLTC for four years, and almost winning the championship once. Acing all the important exams. Receiving her graduation diploma. It had all built up to today, today was the culmination of Ness’s childhood. Tomorrow? Well tomorrow she’d start living the dream.

Now more serious, Ness readjusted her sitting position to face Lynn. He seems distracted, maybe caught up in his own introspection.

“Lynn?” Ness said. He turned towards her, briefly surprised at her serious expression before adopting a more nervous one himself.

“What is it?”

“I’ve got to tell you something.”

“Okay…?” Lynn said, now looking even more nervous.

Ness paused, for dramatic effect, and then exclaimed, “I’ve been accepted into an officer-apprenticeship!”

Lynn, who was completely blindsided, only managed to say, “What?”

Ness plowed onwards, heedless of Lynn’s confusion, “You’ve been accepted into one, too right? You were so obvious, these past couple weeks, always coming this close to telling me something before backing out.”

“Um…” Lynn said but Ness kept going.

“So, I was thinking about what secret you might know that you couldn’t tell me, and then I thought about your father—who although you don’t talk about him lots—I’m sure he’s high up in the government right?”

“Well actual—” Lynn was cut off again.

“So, I figured that he’s gotta have an inside source and he probably knows all the test results and assignments weeks before they tell us, and you got a peek at his documents or he told you or something. Am I right?”

Lynn waited for a moment to make sure Ness was done talking. Then, he responded, “…Um, No, you’re not right.”

“What”

“I didn’t know, before just now, that you’d gotten an officer-apprenticeship,” Lynn paused, and then continued, “and I didn’t apply for one in any case.”

“What”

“Look, I know I never talk much about my family or the future, it’s just not who I am but—” Lynn saw Ness was about to say something, “—let me finish please.”

Ness nodded, and Lynn took a deep breath.

“Well, I’ve been thinking a lot about what I want to do, and I’ve found that I still don’t know. That’s why I’ve decided to become an Acolyte with the Keepers at least until I become a Scholar.” Lynn finished.

“But…” Ness was at a loss; she didn’t know what to say.

Lynn sighed, “Look, Ness, I know what you’re thinking. You’ve worked all your life to become a Mariner, and ever since we were kids, becoming an adventurer or an explorer like those in story books has been your dream. I’m glad for you, I really am, but risking your life on the open ocean is your dream, not mine.”

Ness’s cheeks flushed with embarrassment slightly at the storybook comment. He’s not wrong, however childish it may be, it’s still true. She collected her thoughts for a moment and let the conversation lapse.

“I guess you’re right, it is my dream, but I still expected you to be there, ya know? You can’t argue that we don’t make a fantastic team, and well, you never really said anything about your plans for the future, so I just assumed…” Ness trailed off.

Now it was Lynn’s turn to sigh. “I guess I’m at fault too. I never told you, or anyone much about my family or my plans.”

Ness looked at Lynn expectantly, “You wanna talk about it?”

A moment passed. Then, Lynn started talking.

“First, this isn’t a super interesting story, but this way I am—who I am, is mostly an indirect consequence of my Mother dying when I was three. One day, she woke up and started to hear the Voice. Unusual for someone under the age of 80 I know, but, well that’s what happened. She told someone, or maybe the servants figured it out, but eventually everyone knew. She and my father decided that she’d head to the temple herself before a mob came to get her, and that’s what she did. The next day, she said her goodbyes and headed to the Temple.”

“It sounds harsh to say so, but I’m not that sad about it; I don’t have many memories of her to miss. Honestly, if anything I’m angry at her for leaving me with father. After she died, I became my father’s new project. Someone needed to be his successor, and my brother was already on a different path. Every day since then, he’s tried to groom me into a perfect heir. Etiquette, cultured behavior, and politics lessons day in and day out. He made all these plans for me to follow, breaking down my future into pre-managed and pre-ordained blocks.”

“I don’t want to be my father. I don’t want to be a leader, and I don’t want to have my life be dictated by him step-by-step. I guess that’s why I’m heading to the Keepers. Father can’t really say no, as pursuing more education is something he sees as useful for the heir of a house but what I really want is to become a Scholar and gain the independence that comes with the title.”

The pair fell back into silence. Then Ness spoke up, “Thanks for telling me” and gave him a weak smile. Lynn smiled back, took a small drink, and the pair watched the disk of the sun finally contact the horizon far away.

“Well, enough of my somewhat-depressing storytime, back to what you were telling me…” Lynn said as he looked towards Ness. Then, he cracked a wide smile, “Anissa Mindago, officer-apprentice straight out of school, a young prodigy!”

“Oh, stop it Lynton Declan, it’s not that incredible.” she said as she gave Lynn a playful push.

“‘not that incredible’ she says. What’s the quota? Only 5% of applicants are accepted straight out of school, right? Don’t be so humble.”

“You’re right. I am damn incredible, and everyone’ll do well to remember it!” Ness exclaimed in exaggerated proud tone, “One day, when I’m the captain of my own ship, I’ll use it to mercilessly hunt down and sink everyone who ever slighted me!” She raised her cup and gave her best evil laugh before Lynn joined in and it devolved into regular laughter.

“Alright, alright, enough storybook-antics from you. When are you heading out then?” Lynn asked.

“I’m not quite sure,” Ness said, now thoughtful, “Officially I’m only supposed to find out tomorrow morning, so I don’t know the details yet, but I expect it’ll be in a week or two. How about you?”

“Well, I get to ascend to the Keep in a month, and then I’ll officially be living there for at least two years as an Acolyte.”

“I still can’t believe that you’re gonna become some stuffy scholar, where’s the highly-competent member of team #82?” Ness asked.

Finishing off his glass and refilling it, Lynn sardonically said, “This ‘highly-competent team member’ doesn’t get turned on by the prospect of going on life-threatening adventures and doesn’t particularly want to end up being eaten by some sea monster. Is that really so hard to believe?”

“Hey, that’s not fair!” Ness called with feigned outrage, “I do NOT get ‘turned on by the prospect of going on life-threatening adventures’!”

“Whatever you say,” he said. “Refill?”

Wordlessly, she handed him her now empty cup which was promptly refilled, and the conversation stilled for the moment. Ness looked over to the setting sun, its disk now halfway concealed behind the horizon, which was forming quite the spectacular pattern in the water. She imagined the future, sailing the sea for months at a time discovering who-knows-what, and coming back with wild stories. I’ll miss Lynn though.

“Promise me that we’ll stay friends,” Ness suddenly said.

“Of course! We can meet up whenever you’re back in port, it’s not like the Keep is a prison or anything.”

“Yeah sure, but it’ll still be different. These past couple years we’ve seen each other like every day, and I’m just…” she trailed off

“What is it?”

Ness paused for a moment, “It’s just, you, and the others aren’t only my best friends, you’re my only friends. I don’t think I can make new friends that are as good as you and the others.”

“That’s what you’re worried about?” he said, then snorted, and continued, “It’ll be fine, and besides, I’m not going that far.”

Ness sighed. He doesn’t get it, but then, he’s never had any difficulty making friends.

“It’s just… ah, forget it,” she said, “Let’s not get bogged down with heavy any longer, we should be celebrating!”

Ness glanced at the bottle, which was now only quarter full, and handed Lynn her gold-speckled empty cup again with a smile. He poured them both a refill and then the fancy bottle was empty. The two returned to lighter conversational topics, and a couple minutes later the sun completely set. It was time to head back: the best graduation-night parties started after sundown. Ness and Lynn, now thoroughly buzzed, headed back down towards the lights of civilization.