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Leola speaks, her melodious voice deceptively gentle. "He was fascinated with magic, just like you. He was so kind, caring, loving." She sighs. "And self-sacrificial."
Callum struggles desperately against the vine spell.
Leola observes him. "There is... a group of humans that believes in so-called reincarnation. That a spirit is never truly lost, but merely changed, and becomes a new being."
Callum's thoughts run wild. Is she saying- she can't be saying what he thinks she's saying.
She reaches out to touch him. "I can't explain it, but it almost feels like a piece of him is with you."
Callum has no appetite. The food is incredible- in smell, taste and texture- but as he puts some in his mouth, it feels like raw sawdust. "It's good." He says, and keeps trying to actually swallow.
The cook looks incredibly relieved.
He eats as much as he can stomach, then excuses himself from the table. Nausea rolls around in his gut. He checks his watch, calculating how much time he has before the afternoon study time.
He heads to the bathroom. He splashes his face with freezing water, then sits down on the ground and leans against the wall. Water drips down.
He doesn't see the cook for the next few days, though there are still hot meals consistently left for him. Varied and delicious, albeit increasingly tailored to what he's picking more of.
It might even be nice, if Callum weren't choosing things based on how easy they are to keep down, and not much on taste.
He finally spots the cook. It takes all of Callum's skills not to react. The cook bears a wide smile, cheerful and enthusiastic, and even the eyes carry no trace of protest or discomfort. It looks natural, painfully so, and Callum feels ice cold as the implications play out in his mind.
Commands? Memory tampering? Lobotomy? Another shiver runs down his back. He swallows down the rising terror and greets the cook with a smile of his own.
"Callum~" She says in a sing song voice. "It's past time for bed."
He resolutely stares at the page, unwilling to bring his gaze up.
"It's really late."
He closes the book, but still doesn't look at her.
She sighs. "I do understand it feels more natural to not sleep, but humans do need to for at least a third of the Sun's cycle."
He finally looks up. She's outwardly concerned, but her eyes don't carry the lie quite as well. He sees the sharpness, the warning in them.
He mutely stands up. Pushes the chair in. He doesn't feel like speaking, even if perhaps he should reply with something. He can't. He has no words.
"There will be a new mage soon." She speaks as they slowly walk to his room. "I hope you'll like her."
He shrugs. It's going to be another pawn, twisted into sickening loyalty and unrelenting optimism. This one probably won't break as easily. Leola's gotten a lot better at making them durable.
"Hi Callum!"
Callum freezes. Turns. He feels the blood drain from his face.
Claudia.
"It's good to see you again." She's waving, smiling warmly.
He thinks about leaving, but there's probably no point to it. Considering he hasn't seen Claudia for months, this encounter is unlikely to be by chance.
"Yeah, I get it..." Her expression changes to remorse. "I wasn't very good to you before." She smiles again. "But I'll be good now. I promise."
"Hi." He says.
She looks away again, and he sees something other flicker on her face. "If- if you want to- get even- I've been- corrected." The smile is just a little too tight. "I'm good now. I'll do whatever you say."
He might have held some grudge against her those months ago, but suddenly seeing her as another pawn is only sickening. "No, you can-" do whatever you want to. She can't. If Callum doesn't react here... it's hard to say where she'll be put to use. "Actually, I might need some help with..." He tries to think of something. "Uh, I've been... studying. You can be a study partner?" He offers.
She beams at him. "Of course."
That should protect her, at least for a little while, and Callum can observe her more closely, see if he can't... undo the damage, even a little. Then again, that could backfire.
Pawns generally do not want to go on with the awareness of what's been done to them.
"So... we'll do Star." If he learns more, maybe someday he can free them entirely.