HE'S EIGHTEEN
THE CLASSROOM.
...
Chaos.
Absolute chaos.
...
Timelines covered
the walls.
Questions covered
the board.
Someone had written
PARADOX
in enormous letters.
Someone else
had crossed it out
and replaced it with:
WHICH PARADOX?
...
Three people
were arguing
about Nafsan.
Another two
were arguing
about Safsan.
...
And somehow...
one person
was arguing
with himself.
...
GAAFATAA stood
in the middle
of all of it.
...
He looked exhausted.
...
Not physically.
...
Questioningly.
...
"EVERYONE."
...
Nobody listened.
...
"EVERYONE!"
...
Nothing.
...
GAAFATAA stared.
...
Then...
the door opened.
...
SEENEE walked in.
...
He stopped.
...
Looked left.
...
Looked right.
...
A piece of paper
flew past his face.
...
SEENEE:
"...What happened?"
...
GAAFATAA slowly
turned toward him.
...
"YOU."
...
SEENEE:
"Me?"
...
"YOU STARTED THIS."
...
"I wasn't even here."
...
"EXACTLY."
...
SEENEE stared at him.
...
Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.
GAAFATAA pointed
at the board.
...
NAFSAN.
JHARAA.
NOLLVEIL.
?????
ORIGINAL ORIGIN.
THE PARADOX.
THE AUTHOR.
?????
...
GAAFATAA:
"Do you see this?"
...
"Unfortunately."
...
"I had a system."
...
SEENEE looked around.
...
"You?"
...
"Yes."
...
"A system?"
...
"YES."
...
SEENEE almost laughed.
...
Then remembered
why he had come.
...
His expression changed.
...
"GAAFATAA."
...
The Questioner noticed.
...
"What?"
...
"I checked something."
...
Silence.
...
Somehow...
GAAFATAA already hated
that sentence.
...
"What did you check?"
...
"The Safsan Story universe."
...
GAAFATAA:
"What about it?"
...
"The year."
...
...
GAAFATAA stopped.
...
SEENEE walked
toward the board.
...
He picked up
a piece of chalk.
...
Then wrote:
SAFSAN STORY
BAAČ
CURRENT YEAR:
????
...
The classroom
slowly became quiet.
...
One person stopped
arguing.
...
Another lowered
their notes.
...
GAAFATAA stared
at the year.
...
Once.
...
Twice.
...
Then...
his eyes changed.
...
Not because
he understood everything.
...
He didn't.
...
But something...
something small...
had connected.
...
The Author's words.
...
The paradox.
...
Nafsan.
...
Safsan.
...
The future.
...
The past.
...
The year.
...
GAAFATAA:
"...No."
...
SEENEE:
"What?"
...
"No."
...
"GAAFATAA?"
...
The Questioner
walked toward the board.
...
He stared
at the year.
...
Then at
PARADOX.
...
Then at
NAFSAN.
...
Then at
SAFSAN.
...
He understood
something.
...
Not the answer.
...
Not the whole structure.
...
Not what
THE AUTHOR
had actually done.
...
Just...
a piece.
...
A very small piece.
...
And apparently...
that was already
too much.
...
GAAFATAA slowly
put down his pen.
...
"Do we have anyone
who can replace me?"
...
SEENEE blinked.
...
"What?"
...
"My job."
...
"What about it?"
...
"I quit."
...
The classroom
went silent.
...
SEENEE:
"You can't quit
being the Questioner."
...
"Watch me."
...
GAAFATAA grabbed
his chair.
...
"I'm taking a vacation."
...
SEENEE:
"A vacation from questions?"
...
"Yes."
...
"How does that work?"
...
"I DON'T KNOW."
...
SEENEE smiled.
...
GAAFATAA pointed at him.
...
"Don't."
...
Then he looked
at the year again.
...
"Actually..."
...
"I don't even need
vacation pay."
...
SEENEE:
"That's generous."
...
"No."
...
GAAFATAA looked
toward somewhere
beyond the classroom.
...
Toward...
THE AUTHOR.
...
"The Author
was already crazy."
...
A pause.
...
"But this?"
...
GAAFATAA shook his head.
...
"His madness
is in its own league."
...
...
SCRATCH.
...
BAAČ.
THE KARUUQS CITADEL.
...
Safsan opened his eyes.
...
A ceiling.
...
For several seconds...
that was all
he understood.
...
Then came
the pain.
...
His body remembered
before his mind did.
...
He tried to move.
...
"Don't."
...
Safsan stopped.
...
Someone nearby
was receiving treatment.
...
Halkan.
...
Bandages covered
parts of her body.
Her breathing
was steadier now.
...
She looked exhausted.
...
But awake.
...
Safsan turned
his eyes toward her.
...
Halkan was already
looking at him.
...
For several seconds...
neither spoke.
...
Then Halkan noticed it.
...
His face
was calm.
Too calm.
...
His eyes
were carrying something
his expression refused
to show.
...
Not one emotion.
...
Many.
...
Held back.
Pressed down.
Kept somewhere
behind the silence.
...
Halkan knew
what that looked like.
...
She had spent
too long
learning what people
did with pain.
...
Halkan:
"How old are you?"
...
Safsan blinked.
...
Of all the questions
he expected...
that was not one.
...
"What?"
...
"Your age."
...
Safsan looked at her.
...
Then...
"I know
I look older."
...
Halkan waited.
...
Safsan:
"But I'm eighteen."
...
...
Silence.
...
Across the room...
something moved.
...
Jalatta.
...
He had been sitting
quietly nearby.
...
Now he stared
at Safsan.
...
"Eighteen?"
...
Safsan looked at him.
...
"Yeah."
...
Jalatta stood.
...
"You're eighteen?"
...
"Yes."
...
Jalatta stared.
...
Then pointed at him.
...
"So you're..."
...
He stopped.
...
"A child."
...
Safsan's eyebrow moved.
...
"I'm not a child."
...
"YOU'RE EIGHTEEN."
...
Halkan watched them.
...
Safsan:
"I know."
...
Jalatta:
"No."
...
"You clearly don't."
...
Safsan stared.
...
Jalatta stopped talking.
...
Because suddenly...
Odania returned
to his mind.
...
The bodies.
...
The destruction.
...
The impossible power.
...
Safsan.
...
Safuu.
...
The things
Jalatta had witnessed.
...
The things
he still didn't understand.
...
And now...
the person
at the center
of part of that nightmare
was telling him
he was eighteen.
...
Jalatta slowly
sat back down.
...
His thoughts
became very quiet.
...
Too quiet.
...
Eighteen.
...
He's only eighteen.
...
Then another thought.
...
I need to leave
this place.
...
Jalatta looked at Safsan.
...
This boy...
...
No.
...
This guy...
...
He might be
more dangerous
than I thought.
...
Jalatta remembered
the Mist Forest.
...
JHARAA.
...
The creature
that had come
to kill them.
...
And Safsan...
had done nothing.
...
No black chains.
No impossible force.
No overwhelming power.
...
Nothing.
...
Why?
...
Jalatta's eyes narrowed.
...
Why didn't he use it?
...
Then...
a worse thought.
...
Unless...
...
Jalatta looked
at Safsan again.
...
Does he even know?
...
...
His stomach tightened.
...
Does he have
any idea
what he did
in Odania?
...
Jalatta remembered.
...
The deaths.
...
Countless people.
...
Maybe almost everyone
who had remained.
...
Safsan...
and Safuu.
...
Jalatta lowered his eyes.
...
Safuu...
...
May she rest in peace.
...
Silence.
...
Then Jalatta remembered
something else.
...
Something physical.
...
Something important.
...
His hand moved
toward his clothing.
...
Carefully.
...
Quietly.
...
He searched.
...
Once.
...
Nothing.
...
His heart jumped.
...
He searched again.
...
Deeper.
...
Then...
his fingers touched it.
...
Jalatta froze.
...
Still there.
...
He slowly
wrapped his hand
around it.
...
THE KEY.
...
The same key
that had opened
a door
from nowhere.
...
The same key
that had brought them
to BAAČ.
...
Jalatta closed
his fingers around it.
...
Safsan noticed
the movement.
...
"What are you doing?"
...
Jalatta immediately
released the key.
...
"Nothing."
...
Safsan stared at him.
...
Jalatta smiled.
...
A terrible smile.
...
"I'm just happy
you're alive."
...
Safsan continued
looking at him.
...
Jalatta looked away.
...
His hand remained
close to the key.
...
One thought
repeated itself.
...
If I need to leave...
...
I need to know
I still can.
...
SCRATCH.
...
CHAPTER 41
HE'S EIGHTEEN
...
GAAFATAA
UNDERSTOOD
ONE PIECE.
...
NOT THE PARADOX.
NOT THE ANSWER.
...
ONE PIECE.
...
AND THAT WAS ENOUGH
TO MAKE THE QUESTIONER
ASK FOR A VACATION.
...
HALKAN SAW
WHAT SAFSAN
WAS HOLDING BACK.
...
JALATTA LEARNED
SAFSAN'S AGE.
...
AND NOW...
HE HAS A QUESTION
OF HIS OWN.
...
DOES SAFSAN
EVEN KNOW
WHAT HE DID?
...
THE KEY
IS STILL WITH JALATTA.
...
END.