“Are you sure about that, kid?” The woman asked, looking me up and down. “That’s not a menu item and it’s quite spicy.”

Spicy? Why couldn’t things ever be simple? I looked back at Mika who shrugged. The woman heaved a sigh and beckoned for us to follow her. “Very well. Have it your way. Come this way. We have special seating for guests like you.”

We were led to a room in the back and sat around a filthy table. The hostess left before we could so much as order a glass of water. We waited in silence for several minutes before Marcelle whispered. “I don’t like this.”

“Me neither,” Ulli added. “It’s dirty.”

Mika rolled her eyes. “This is nothing. We had a flood once and everything was covered in mud.”

“I’m sorry,” Marcelle said, looking guilty. “You must have had it rough. However, you have to admit this room is not up to the same standards as the public tables.”

I shrugged. “We didn’t come here to eat. However, if the dirt is an issue, I can fix that.”

I lit my inner fire and pushed a wall of flame out of my hands, devouring the scum and cobwebs that seemed to be everywhere in the room. Ulli and Marcelle were used to my tricks but Mika wasn’t. She dove out of the way as the flame raced past her. I gave the whole room a once-over, leaving it practically sparkling in my wake.

Right when Mika was taking her seat, a waiter in a fancy suit appeared with a covered platter. He set it on the table between us and smiled. “Bon appetite.”

Like the host, the waiter retreated without saying anything else. We stared at the platter as if it were a trap. Tentatively, I reached out to grasp the lid.

“Careful!” Ulli urged as I slowly lifted it. Beneath was half a dozen oysters in a half shell, bathed in a buttery sauce.

“Try one,” I said, pushing the tray toward Marcelle.

“Why me?” She asked, looking back and forth between me and the food.

“Because you like spicy food,” I joked. “Besides, I can cure you if you get poisoned. It might be hard to cure myself if it’s bad.”

We were spared having to eat it when another woman in a black evening gown entered the room. She looked around and whistled appreciatively. “Did you clean in here?”

“He did,” Ulli said, pointing an accusatory finger at me.

“Who told you to order the oysters?” The woman asked, ignoring Ulli’s reply.

Mika stood to reply. “That would be my mom, Viola. She is the head of the coalition in the Camelot underbelly. She told me how to find you.”

“Ah, that old crow,” the woman replied. Viola hadn’t seemed that old to me. “What can I do for you kids?”

That was my chance. “Viola says you might know of a way off Origin.”

The woman laughed. “She was mistaken. Only The Creator can get on or off of this rock. The planet is sealed. Even if you could survive the void, trying to slip past the barrier would be the equivalent of trying to pass through a blade.”

“But my mom said you’d be able to help,” Mika whined.

The woman gave a knowing smile. “If your goal is to leave Origin, then the answer is no. However, if you just wish to make a call, that’s a different matter. I can help you contact someone on the outside. For a price, of course.”

“How much?” I asked, thankful for my account balance. “I’ve got money.”

The woman shook her head. “Oh, no. It’s not going to be that easy. If you want me to use all of the mana I’ve built up, you’re going to have to put in some work.”

“What kind of work?” Marcelle asked, looking suspicious.

The woman sat across from us and picked up an oyster. She held it up for a moment before slurping the contents from the shell. “The kind of work you’re suited for. Magic.’

“She never even gave us her name,” Ulli muttered as we walked down the street toward the tower we passed earlier.

I sighed. “She did make a good point though. It’s not like I could give her my real name. Not while I’m using this illusion.”

“Do you think she knew?” Marcelle asked, looking worried.

It didn’t matter if she knew. If she did and I couldn’t trust her, then my father already knew what I was up to. All I could do was keep moving forward and hopefully get in contact with Kalli. Realizing everyone was waiting for me to reply, I said, “I don’t think so. Let’s get this job done so she can pay up.”

“Can you do the job?” Ulli asked.

I shrugged, looking around the undersea city. “It’s going to be difficult without the system but I have done similar things before.”

The first challenge was getting an idea of how big Atlantis actually was. While I’d walked from one side to the other, it was much longer than it was wide. In the end, I stepped into the void to get a better look. Since time basically froze while I was in there I left my companions in the street while I got the lay of the land.

The tower I’d seen earlier was almost dead center of Atlantis. Looking closely, I discovered a good chunk of the city had been reclaimed by the ocean. Remnants of buildings sat outside of the bubble, corroded and taken over by sea life. I dropped back out of the void in the same place I’d entered it, causing the three girls to jump out of the way.

“What was that?” Marcelle asked.

“I teleported,” I replied. “I needed to get an idea of what we’re up against.”

“You flickered,” Ulli said, getting up off the ground.

Marcelle ignored Ulli. “Did you get what you needed? Can you do it?”

“I think so,” I said. “Part of Atlantis is underwater. If what that lady said is true, this tower is the key.”

“If this is so important to Atlantis, shouldn’t it be guarded?” Mika asked as we walked up to the sealed structure.

I reached out to touch it. Strong mana reacted the instant I made contact. It didn’t repel me. Instead, it fed hungrily on the ambient mana that pulsed off of me. So I fed it. The draw was similar to the time I summoned Kalli and it was all I could do to remain upright while I gave the tower what it wanted. I expected to see system messages telling me what was happening. That didn’t happen because I was still blocked by my dad. However, a voice spoke in my head.

Do you wish to reclaim what was lost?

I didn’t know how to interact with it. Was thought enough as it had been with the system? Not wanting to risk it, I said, “Yes.”

This will be painful. Are you sure?

Was the system talking to me? Did it find a way to connect with me through mana when my father was doing everything he could to block it? I had to ask. “Yes, do it! But who are you?”

I am your connection to that which governs all. You can never be truly cut off. You are tied by blood. Her blood.

I wanted to think about it but the system had other ideas. The mana stabbed into me, acting like a straw as it attempted to suck all of the life from me faster than my core could generate it. I vaguely felt the girls holding me up as my hand felt like it was anchored to the tower. I felt sick to my stomach as the process emptied me repeatedly. Then it was over and darkness set in.

I found myself sitting by myself in the dream world. Once again Kalli wasn’t there. I still felt the connection. I even dreamed I felt her essence pushing through the void trying to reach me. What had I been doing? It was normal to forget a dream after suddenly waking up. Was it normal to forget what you did while you were awake if you suddenly fell asleep?

Then I remembered. The tower. More importantly, I’d left Mika, Ulli, and Marcelle alone in Atlantis.

Wake up, wake up, wake up!

I flooded my body with mana, doing my best to rejuvenate myself. Hopefully, that would help me wake up. Then a voice spoke. “You don’t need to rush things.”

“Who said that?” I asked, looking around. A familiar feline woman lurked in the shadows of my dream. “Ugh, Aya, this is not the time for a tutorial.”

“I’m not here to give you one,” she replied, sauntering over to me. “It is time I told you more about what I am. You know my name is Aya but that is just a nickname for what I am. I am an A.I. designed by a very special group of awakened called Technicians. I was infused into your core when you were very young to aid you on your journey.”

“Wait just a second,” I balked. “Are you saying you don’t give tutorials to everyone?”

She stared at me and said nothing, waiting for me to digest what she just told me before moving on. When I thought about it, the only other person who had ever had a tutorial from Aya was Kalli. That had been because of her bond with me. Then again, that meant Aya was connected to her too. “Hey, do you know where Kalli is right now?”

“I’m sorry. I can’t help with that,” Aya replied curtly. “My primary function is to guide you so you can restore balance to the system.”

“In case you didn’t notice, I’m grounded,” I replied. “Can you at least get a message to Kalli for me?”

She shook her head. “I apologize. My abilities cannot exceed your own. I am merely here to guide you.”

“Well, guide me to Kalli then!” I demanded.

Aya sighed, her tail swishing wildly behind her. “Solve the puzzle.”

“What puzzle?” I asked, getting frustrated.

A smile appeared on her lips. “The one you’ve been focused on since your arrival on Origin.”

“Can you at least wake me up?” I asked. “My friends need me.”

“Your friends are safe,” she replied. “I have shown myself to you to let you know the time is near. You must find a special artifact. The source of your father’s power exists somewhere on Origin. Only you possess the power to claim it.”

“What? Why?” I asked, completely flummoxed. “Why are you speaking in riddles? Just tell me what you want.”

“Unfortunately, I wasn’t designed to have answers,” she replied sadly. “I was given to you to provide answers when the time is right in a way you can understand them. Originally, I did so with tutorials. Now you need to know more.”

“So let me get this straight,” I said, ticking off points on my fingers. “You can’t help me get to Kalli. You want me to get an artifact but you can’t tell me what it is. And you can’t tell me anything directly because you don’t know what you want. Did I miss anything?”

“Yes,” she replied, not bothered at all by my questions. “Time is of the essence. If the artifact gains any more mana, it will destroy everything.”

“Oh good,” I replied, unable to control my laughter. “ No pressure? Right?”

“I’ve said what needs to be said,” Aya said with a straight face. “You may wake now.”

I woke with a start, laying in the street with three concerned faces peering down at me. Ulli heaved a sigh of relief and announced. “He’s alive!”

Mika looked up at the barrier overhead and asked, “Did it work?”

Marcelle laughed, looking off into the distance. “Yes, I think it did.”