Legacy's Ghost

Episode 37: The Foundation

 Edmond pops a piece of croissant into his mouth. He gestures to the Ghost sitting on my other side and says, "Right now, let's focus on our discussions. I will be here, but I will not speak unless I feel Tradon is manipulating you.

Otherwise, I am here to witness the meeting should there be any disputes, understood?"

My eyebrows shoot up. "We're starting now?"

Edmond inclines his head as if to agree. "According to protocol, Tradon has one hour to plead his case. Then you will meet with your next person. If you need more time, you may request it."

"Okay." I grab the goblet and bring it up to my mouth, sighing when I remember my face covering. My stomach rumbles again. I lift the compression mask and put the goblet up to my mouth, drinking the entire cup, mainly because I don't want to go through the hassle of pulling the mask up every time I'm thirsty. Stupid mask.

Edmond narrows his eyes at me slightly, before turning to the Ghost. "Did you not show him how to cut a hole in the mask so he can eat?"

The Ghost's shoulder lifts. "I thought it more entertaining to watch him struggle for a bit."

My eyes widen, and I whip my head around to stare at the Ghost. "What?"

The Ghosts shoulders shake as he laughs. "It's a rite of passage. My Ghost did the same thing to me. I'm doing it to you." His voice lowers, "Except Edmond ruined it. My Ghost waited three months before he told me."

The irritation and hurt burning in my chest disappear, making way for a snicker. I wrinkle my nose. "How long were you going to wait to tell me?"

The Ghost lifts his shoulder again then pops a grape into his hood without the need of his other hand to lift the compression mask. "I was going to give you a month then have mercy."

I grin. "And long enough for me to be ready to tear my mask off every time I put it on."

The Ghost nods. "Yep. The uniform is miserable, so you've gotta find ways to have fun with it."

Chuckling, Edmond says, "We're losing minutes here. You're already on the clock. State your case, Tradon."

The Ghost sighs and pushes his plate away from him, then adjusts himself so he's looking at me. "I'm not going to need a full hour to plead my case. My reasoning is simple enough. It is the others who will need their time to convince you to overlook my job."

"What does that mean?" I ask.

"The job of a Ghost is to maintain balance. To make sure that no single ruling class ever has more power than the other, and then to make sure that whatever is best for Legacy – whether that be by means of peace or by means of war—is accomplished. Do you understand that, Atan?" he asks.

I nod.

"Do you believe that? To your core? Are you willing to die to maintain this principle that was established by Legacy's founding colonists?" he asks. "Even if people will hate you because of it? Wish you were dead? Ostracize you?"

I snort. "I'm already heated and ostracized. People already want me dead," I say. "How is being a Ghost any different?"

"Because right now you don't have power. In less than twenty four hours, you'll have the power to make people like you, maybe even love you. You'll have the power to be the most popular person on the planet. The most powerful person on the planet. But you'd have to compromise your morals and the principles the station of Ghost is founded on."

The Ghost leans closer, as if trying to emphasize his point. "Gamma and Magnus will try to convince you to give them your power. Your influence. They want to present you to their faction as the answer to their Swarm problem. But if you choose either of those sides, you will tip the scales, giving either of them too much control over the people."

"What do you want me to do?" I ask, furrowing my brows.

The Ghost leans away, straightening. "Sometimes in order to keep the balance you must remove the power. Do not give it to either of them. Insist on impartiality. Because, if you take sides, you cease to be the Ghost."

"Nobody's going to let me hang around the Monastery being a TAG when they know what I did," I say.

"I know." The Ghost sighs. "Which is why you'd no longer be allowed to be a TAG. You'd officially become my apprentice, and the other ghouls would continue to learn with the understanding that they will not have an opportunity to be a Ghost unless both my Trinity and your Trinity falls, which would be highly unlikely in their lifetimes."

"What you're proposing is unprecedented," Edmond murmurs.

"Atan's powers are unprecedented," the Ghost says. "Gamma wants to proclaim him a god. That says something right there."

Edmond inclines his head then turns to me. "Do you have any other questions you want to ask the Ghost?"

I shake my head. It's already crammed full of ideas. How am I going to talk to the others? How am I going to make a decision in twenty-four hours?

"Very well," Edmond says, then turns to the Ghost again. "Thank you for your time. Atan will have a decision by noon tomorrow."

The Ghost nods then rises, pushing his velvet chair away from the table. His hood dips like he's looking down on me. "I don't envy your position, Atan. But I will trust your heart and your mind. I know you'll do the right thing."

Then he strides out of the hall and out the doors.

As the door closes, Edmond rises. "Grab a plate of food if you'd like. We're moving to the Receiving Room to meet with the others."