Chapter 11 - Getting to Know You

Jack’s stomach grumbled, but he joined Thespis when he noticed him casting furtive glances toward the far wall.

“Not hungry?” he asked.

Thespis gave him a sheepish look. “Oh gods, no. I’m starving. But I—uh—need to find a spot.”

Jack followed his gaze to the crevices and winding shadows beyond the pool. “Ah,” he said with a knowing nod. “Nature calls.”

Thespis nodded, lowering his voice. “Thought you could do that light thing. You know, help me find somewhere… less weird.”

Jack smirked. “Yeah, this place is definitely ‘please don’t pee on an ancient altar’ levels of weird.”

He walked back to the group and leaned down toward Kleo. “Hey, Thespis and I are taking a quick walk. Call of nature.”

Kleo blinked at him. “Together?”

Jack shrugged. “Safety in numbers.”

Maya gave them a lingering look as the two approached the wall. “How much trouble can they manage to get into? Wait. Don’t answer that.”

Will half-stood. “I could tag along.”

Kleo shook her head. “They’re grown men—almost.”

Maya smirked. “Maybe it’s a guy thing. Peeing in groups. Something primal, like a bonding ritual.”

Will frowned. “That’s… not a thing.”

“I dunno,” Maya said. “You and Jerod used to wander off together all the time. Looked ritualistic to me.”

Will squinted at her. “We were tracking game.”

“Sure,” Maya said, deadpan.

"I've never figured out if women go to the bathroom in groups to gossip, plot revenge, or summon demons," Will said, half-serious.

"I'm down for all three," Kleo said, turning to Maya. "Why don't we pee together? I'd totally pee with you."

"Same," Maya said. "We've been missing out on quality bonding time."

"Next time?" Kleo offered.

"Deal," Maya said.

Will glanced around the cavern and muttered, "There must be some weird fumes in here."

----------------------------------------

Jack’s orb floated ahead, its soft glow pushing back the shadows that clung to the Anth tunnels like cobwebs. The air was stale but dry, and their boots made muffled echoes on the stone floor as they moved away from the camp.

“Are we sure this isn’t a terrible idea?” Thespis muttered.

Jack shrugged. “Depends—how desperate are you?”

“If something jumps out, I’m either dying or peeing on it. Possibly both.”

Jack smirked. “That’ll be fun for both of you.”

“Although honestly, if something eats me out here, it’s probably doing the world a favor.”

“Don’t worry, I tell the others you died like a man. Just… you know, a man with his pants halfway down.”

“Thanks, Jack. I knew I could count on you,” Thespis said with a laugh.

They continued, avoiding the narrow side passages, sticking to the wider one that sloped downward. It wasn’t long before the walls began to change. The rough natural stone gave way to smooth surfaces, and the workmanship spoke of hands and time.

“Whoa,” Thespis said, his voice low with surprise.

The corridor opened into a circular chamber. A band of symbols—worn but still precise, each set spaced evenly along the curve—ringed the entire room. Jack raised the orb, letting the light travel across them. Some looked familiar, but none he could read.

“Do you know what these are?” Jack asked.

Thespis shook his head. “No. But this is portal architecture. Old. Real old.”

Jack approached the far wall, fingers trailing the grooves in the stone. “So where’s the door?”

“There isn’t one,” Thespis said. “Not until it wants to open. Or you ask nicely.”

Jack snorted and reached toward an irregularity—a slight depression no wider than his palm. He pressed it.

With a whispering groan, a section of the wall slid inward, revealing a second chamber beyond.

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Thespis moved to the door. “I’ll hold it open. Go take a look.”

Jack stepped inside. Smooth black stone walls glinted in the orb’s glow. At the center sat a large, disc-like structure embedded in the floor, faint etchings forming concentric rings around it. Pictographs branched out like sunrays from the center. Across the room, off to one side, two figures rested against the wall—one tall, the other small. Jack approached cautiously, and his stomach twisted.

A mummified woman cradled a child in her arms, their bodies petrified in stillness. Clothes turned to dust—skin like old paper. Eyes forever closed.

Jack stepped back, breath catching in his throat.

Behind him, Thespis let out a sharp gasp.

Something had brushed against him—something icy—a sensation like fingers made of frigid silk sliding along his side.

“Jack—” he started, stepping backward in panic. His boot skidded on the smooth floor, and the door sealed behind him with a soft thunk.

Jack spun. “What did you do?!”

“I didn’t do anything—it touched me!”

“What touched you?!”

“I don’t know, something just brushed past me!”

They stood there, breathless, staring at the sealed wall.

“I think it’s… gone,” Thespis said. “Whatever it was, it was in a hurry to get out.”

Jack’s jaw clenched, still shaken. “Or it’s in here with us. Waiting.”

There was a long silence as they scanned the shadows. The orb revealed nothing, but that didn’t make Jack feel better. He knew there were things, like the Sasayaka reta Himitsu, that lived inside the shadows.

“This is a portal chamber. That disc is the device—it just needs to be activated. I’ve seen ones like it. Not… exactly like this, but close,” Thespis said

“We can worry about that later. See if you can open the door?”

Thespis tried. He pressed the walls and ran his fingers along the seams. Nothing.

“We’ll have to wait for them to find us. Shouldn’t take too long.”

“Well, it’ll be longer than I can hold it,” Jack said, moving to the far corner and relieving himself. Thespis followed suit with a muttered apology to the ancient tribe.

They settled against the wall, knowing they’d have some time. Jack searched for something to say, but specific topics felt off-limits—Sela’s disappearance, for one, and the complicated mess that was Astiria. Thespis still didn’t know the details about his father’s involvement in Demana’s betrayal, and Jack wasn’t sure what to believe either. Everything he’d heard about Markus was muddled—to some; he seemed like a savior; to others, a traitor.

“So, you and my sister,” Thespis said.

“Yep. Me and your sister,” Jack replied.

“We never got along that well,” Thespis admitted. “I guess I always saw her as competition. Mother and Father were hardly around… too busy running a country.”

Jack knew Kleo’s childhood had been much the same.

“I spent half my life trying to outdo her. The other half pretending I didn’t care that I couldn’t.”

Jack couldn’t imagine outdoing Kleo at anything.

“Being married to your sister has really opened my eyes.”

“To love?”

“No. To how terrifying she is when she’s mad.”

Thespis smirked. “She’s beaten me up more times than I can count. I'm pretty sure the last time she gave me a black eye was because I told her she’d never grow into her ears.”

Jack chuckled. “She has great ears.”

Thespis nodded. “Yeah. I deserved the beating.”

“Once, she told me I’d never be more than a footnote in someone else’s story. That was the nicest thing she ever said to me.”

“Ouch.”

“Turns out she’s not even my sister,” Thespis said, his voice flat. “Not really. l don’t understand the whole story.”

He glanced at Jack, hoping for an answer.

“That’s Kleo’s story,” Jack said. “You should hear it from her.”

Thespis nodded. Worth a try.

“What do you know about the Demana sanctuary?” he asked. “It shocked me. No one in Astiria ever mentioned it—so it can’t be common knowledge. Do you think my father knew?”

“You know what I know: the box, Kleo’s mother, the captain, the desert sanctuary. Have you tried connecting the dots?”

Thespis lowered his head. “I have. And everything points to my father being involved in something dark—no doubt Barto’s behind it.”

Jack stayed quiet. There wasn’t much to say.

After a moment, Thespis looked up. “I’m worried about Sela. It’s my fault. I should’ve protected her.”

Jack winced. Thespis was both wrong and right. “If you had, you’d be dead. That wouldn’t do her much good.”

“I’m not doing her much good alive, either,” Thespis muttered.

“Then be ready to do good when the time comes. When we find her, you’ll get your chance. Focus on that. There’s a Demana saying—‘Look forward, never back,’ right?”

Thespis sighed. “More or less.”

“I’ve never been anyone special,” Thespis said. “More a self-centered ass than anything. But with her… I wanted to be better. She’s amazing, Jack. She has to be alive. And I have to be someone who deserves her.”

“You will be. Make sure you show her, don’t just say it. Keep your expectations low, though—it might take time.”

“Even if she hates me, I must say I’m sorry.”

They sat in silence, the cavern humming with distant echoes.

“How do you do it, Jack?” Thespis asked. “With Kleo, I mean.”

Jack laughed. “Wrong guy to ask. I stumble through life and hope for the best.”

Thespis gave a weak smile. “That’s not very encouraging. Nothing ever works out for me. You know, sometimes I think the only things I’m good at are running away and making things worse.”

“Then congratulations, you’re officially a real person.”

“That night, when I saw Junas standing there like a death puppet—I ran as fast as I could, leaving Sela and Calman standing there.”

“At least you didn’t trip and get eaten.”

“A minor miracle. I suppose I should thank the gods for that.”

“Now, you’re locked in a portal room with me, deep inside a mysterious cave once the home of an ancient race of humans. Things could be worse.”

Thespis turned to look at the two figures hunched in the corner. “They could be better.”

Jack considered that. “True.”

There was a pause, and then Jack continued. "My advice would be not to take my advice, but here it is: be real. Be honest with yourself. That's it. You figure out what matters to you and try to live like it does—even if nobody else understands. Doesn't mean you have everything figured out. It only means you're not pretending."

"What if there's nothing left under all the pretending?"

"That's the pretending talking," Jack said. "Being yourself is hard, but pretending to be someone else? That’s just as hard and never works. Trust me—I've tried both."

"I don't know who I am," Thespis said softly.

Jack smiled. "Sure you do. You're the guy you decided wasn't good enough a long time ago. He's still in there—you need to dig him out from under all the walls you built to protect him."

Thespis let that sink in. "Jack?"

"Yeah?"

"I'm lonely."

Jack nodded. He knew the feeling from his days in Cabal.

"I never really had friends. Even Kleo had an imaginary you."

Jack snorted. "Hope I was more useful than the real me."

Jack paused, sensing Thespis's quiet desperation. "I'm your friend." It was a bit of a stretch—but it wasn't not true.

Thespis blinked. "Really?"

"Of course. I don't go to the bathroom with just anyone."