Galaxy of Hyperion: Mystic Heir

Chapter Eighteen: What Goes Around

For quite a while, there was nothing but silence in the room Jay and Lana were sharing. They were both lost in their own thoughts, and yet they were aware of one another at the same time. Jay kept on giving Lana sideways glances just to make sure that she wasn't going to say anything that would rub her the wrong way. She was positive that Lana had something to tell her about recent events, but she didn't even know where to start in convincing Lana to actually talk about it. 

When the quiet finally broke, it was Lana who shattered the silence. "Is there something that you wanted to ask me?" she questioned, her voice far too kind and open for the situation they were in. Jay was still positive that Lana was dancing around the truth, coming close enough to kiss it but never quite closing the distance. 

"I think that you know something about what's been happening here recently," Jay finally confessed, her gaze hardening into something sharp and interrogative. "If you're aware of something involving the Skylian Mages, you should just go on and tell us. We have too much to get done to let up now."

"I feel like you already know what I'm aware of," Lana remarked with a shake of her head. "In fact, you should know about the things that I've been thinking. They're about you, and I'm positive that you've been hiding them as of late because you aren't sure that you can trust us."

Jay didn't know how to respond to that at first, so she instead looked down at the ground. "If you're trying to get me to talk more about the past, it isn't going to work. I don't like to think about stuff that happened before we started our search for the Skylian Mages," she told Lana, trying to keep her tone from bordering into a territory that sounded too harsh. 

"I know that you don't like to think about it, but you should really try to open up and trust us enough to say what you've been thinking all this time. If you want my opinion, there's a reason that you and Arian were chosen to bring the group together. You haven't admitted it yet, but there's most certainly a cause for you two being paired together of all people. It all starts with you actually deciding that you can open up to us and trust us with the information that you've been hiding since you started assembling the group," Lana continued. 

Jay fell silent at her words, unwilling to offer a cohesive response. She didn't know how Lana could be so calm about all of this when she felt like she was going to explode on the inside. Of course she didn't want to talk about it. Would anybody feel comfortable with freely sharing information in her position? Of course not. It would be ridiculous to assume that. Jay almost wished that she hadn't asked anything of Lana in the first place, but she was positive that it wouldn't have gotten her anywhere. 

"If you really know something about me and Arian, then why don't you at least say what's going on with him?" Jay questioned. "How is he connected to all of this? I know how I tie in with Lyloc, but he... He's a bit of a different story, and it's important for us to find out how he's involved with her."

"I've already mentioned it," Lana confessed. "But if I'm not going to share your secret with the rest of the group, it's only fair that I give him the same treatment. I'm not going to be saying a word until I have solid proof. Right now, I only have suspicions. I know who you are, but I need to find out a bit more in order to say for sure who Arian is and how he ties in with Lyloc."

Jay let out a small sigh, almost having expected her to give that response but not wanting to believe it. She closed her eyes briefly and allowed the silence to fall in around her. She didn't know where to even start in figuring out what was happening with Arian. She was aware that he was a young person who had been forced to fight far too early, but that applied to her as well, and she was positive that their situations were completely different. She just didn't know where the distinction was, and she wouldn't be aware until she was able to take a step back and take note of where the line in the sand was drawn and who could have sketched it in the first place.