Chapter Three: Mele’s Answers

Early the next morning, Xan-I rebooted and slowly grounded itself from the terminal that Mele kept in the back area of her place. It was a storage area with a variety of supplies that she used for herself and all of the patrons who stopped by. Xan-I wandered back up to the bar to see if Mele was awake yet, and little to no surprise, there she was behind the bar going through room to room tidying up and preparing for the day. As Mele was cleaning off some chairs, she heard the loud metallic foot thumps of Xan-I, “Good morning, my friend! I would offer you coffee but you don’t drink!” Xan-I walked up to Mele and said, “You are too kind, thank you for your hospitality again, Mele. I apologize for making so many patrons run off yesterday.” A towel from Mele’s hand waved sharply in the air as if Mele was a referee calling an illegal move in a game. “Nonsense! It may be easier said than done but don’t worry about yesterday. People down here have very mixed opinions about mechanisms. It is not you, it just so happens that the horrific events we have lived through involved mechanisms. Last night was a big misunderstanding. Some of them have never even seen your model before!”

This did help Xan-I feel less guilty about causing a stir among the people, but it still wanted to make up for the trouble it may have caused Mele. Mele walked behind the bar and poured herself a cup of coffee. Vapors danced from the urn as the velvety drink slipped into the cup like a waterfall. After setting the urn of coffee to the side, Mele brought her cup up to her nose and took a deep breath through her nose- smelling the intoxicating aroma of her beverage. Xan-I wished that it could also share in the feeling of comfort that it saw upon Mele’s face. “Oh my, I am so sorry that I can not share this with you, Xan-I. Coffee is a wonderful experience. Tell me, what is on your mind this morning, my friend?”

Xan-I stood to think about the order of questions it wanted to ask Mele, and then it began its list, “It’s okay, Mele! That coffee does look like a nice experience. Well, I did have a few questions, Mele. Now that I am here, are we going to go back up to Xanropa and fix it? Would anyone join me in the quest to reclaim our utopia from Tyrant Vaine? What should be our next steps? A part of me feels the need to just wander about the tetrahedron.”

While listening to Xan-I, Mele sipped her coffee during and after its questions. Allowing her beverage to marinade the mechanism’s questions within her mind, Mele took some time before answering Xan-I. “Oh my friend, I feel like you are determined to turn Xanropa back into the world you lost long ago, don’t you?” Xan-I nodded and its body language showed the tenacity of a mourner. Mele smiled sympathetically at Xan-I and looked into its eye with a gaze of compassion, “Of course, we want our planet back, but we don’t know half of the dangers that exist on the surface. If you went, you may not make it back operational. I know that I would not be of much help on the surface, who else would take care of everyone here if I were away? I am sure you asked Charles already, right?”

Xan-I looked down and said, “You are right, you are needed here. Charles is too. I wish that we all could just leave and revive the planet. It is infuriating that this passionate desire of mine does not have an easy solution.”

As the mechanism finished its sentence, its C-shaped hands balled up into the equivalent of fists. Mele could sense the urge of her mechanized friend. After all, it was stuck in a time that it did not belong in. “This is for you, what a nightmare is to us, Xan-I.” Setting her coffee down, she made her way around the bar to put her hand on Xan-I’s wrist. “If I knew we could go up and return to the planet we both remember safely, trust me, I would lead you up myself. About Tyrant Vaine- no one knows if any part of his mortal remains are alive, or if he is a revenant forever connected to his mechanized omnipotence. Therefore, there is no easy way of telling if we could overtake him and his forces.” Xan-I shook its head in agreement with Mele and then replied, “What if we could though? If no one has gone toward the first vertice, maybe the tyrant is only dead and our goal is more simple than we thought?!” Mele tapped on Xan-I’s wrist and said, “Oh, I know my dear. Unfortunately, we have sent some people up there before. They never came back, for they are lost to the surface above. During their last communication with us, it sounded like they were ambushed by either Surfacers, or the tyrant’s mechanisms.”

The term Surfacers came back up, and Xan-I wanted to revisit this with Mele, “Can you tell me more about Surfacers, Mele? I don’t want to distract you from your breakfast.”

Mele took another sip of her coffee and replied, “It is no trouble, Surfacers are people who have chosen to remain on the surface of Xanropa independently. They do not call themselves Xanropians nor New Originators; they are nomads who either try to protect the land that is not ruined and scavenge for survival. Not all of them are bad, I think that there is a misunderstanding about them, but because they want nothing to do with any faction, we don’t know their intentions.” Xan-I lit up and interrupted, “So, are you saying that they could become allies if they could be convinced?” Mele shrugged her shoulders, “I really don’t know. It could be possible I guess, but some Surfacers just want to keep their independence and will never be allies. No matter who their allies could be.”

Xan-I’s inquiries on Surfacers continued, “Do you know any Surfacers, Mele?” Thinking for a brief second, Mele hummed and wondered before answering, “You know, I can’t say that I do. I have only ever been told about them. Which is why I justifiably do not see them as bad people, nor good people. The Surfacers simply exist, just like us!”

“Thanks for your answers, Mele. I do appreciate it.” Having had its questions answered, Xan-I decided to let Mele finish her coffee in peace and stood by the bar to keep her company. As she took the last swallow of her coffee, she started to prepare herself some breakfast. As she cracked some eggs and warmed up some bread, Mele spoke to Xan-I, “Last night, I had a dream, would you like to hear about it?” Excitedly, Xan-I shook its head and walked closer over to Mele.

“Normally, I only tell people that I know will enjoy hearing about dreams because I take them seriously and think they hold many meanings.” Mele held up a spatula she was using to cook her eggs with and lovingly pointed it at Xan-I, “So consider yourself lucky that I tell you about this dream that I had!” Xan-I replied, “Of course, Mele! I have not heard about a dream since before I had been asleep for all those years. Please, tell me!” Mele smiled and continued to cook her breakfast as she told Xan-I about her dream, “Like some of my other dreams- the beginning is a little foggy, but eventually in my dream, you were all dressed up in human clothes. Shirt, pants, shoes, you even had human hands! The only thing that mechanized about you was your head! We were at a park that was cradled by tall trees and in the middle of the park was an archaic-shaped house- a rectangular cube with a triangular roof, the kind that younglings usually draw. We went into the house and you know what? You had a family! They all had your head, your spouse, and the children, they wore clothes, pants, shoes, and they had human hands like you! After we met each other, we sat down and we had a meal together and then we played games before I left your house. It had gotten dark outside- I figure now that it was turning to night outside. As I was walking in some direction or another, I was lost briefly in the pending darkness. Then, as the dream was ending, the only thing I remember about the conclusion was that a giant moth flew by and it was glowing like a moon. It was so beautiful. It reminded me of some of the moths I used to see on the surface before the tyrant’s time. As I woke, I felt nothing but happiness. It was a real neat dream!”

Xan-I stood in enchantment of Mele’s dream, it was always so charming and amazing how organic minds could produce and direct such experiences. Xan-I longed to have a dream like Mele’s, to briefly escape from its current time and then return with some refreshment. A transparent wave of smoke rose up from Mele’s pan as she finished frying her eggs and then she took her warm bread and spread out some jelly on it. After assembling her breakfast, she sat down at her bar and began to eat. Through a mouth full of a nourishing meal, she asked Xan-I, “Do you need anything, Xan-I? Just ask, and I can see what I can do for you.” Xan-I made a small bowing gesture and gratefully responded, “Oh, my! I am quite alright, Mele. Thank you though! Please enjoy your breakfast, I will take a look around your place, I did not get to see everything up close last night. Mele shook her head and continued eating as Xan-I walked to the other side of Skyfish II, to finish its viewing of Mele’s place. As Xan-I walked through the doorway that led into another seating area, it got a better glimpse of Mele’s big score. The head of Tyrant Vaine’s mechanisms frightened Xan-I more as it looked at it up close. Its three eyes no longer monitored its surroundings, but each eye seemed to peer into Xan-I’s eyes as if it were still hunting any oppressors of the tyrant. Xan-I could not believe the courage Mele had to defend the injured New Originators and take down this beast. Mele was not one to mess around with, Xan-I noted in its memory bank.

Along the walls of the extended seating area were more projections of tropical trees and leaves flowing through a breeze. It produced a relaxing atmosphere for patrons to occupy. As Xan-I finished looking around Mele’s and headed back to the bar, it noticed Mele talking to someone through the front door of her place. “Okay, well, can you let me know when it is out of your place? I really want to come in, but I cannot come in if that thing is going to be here- I thought it was only a rumor!” Mele politely chuckled and said back to the woman at the door, “Oh my dear, you have nothing to be afraid of with Xan-I! It is a good kid, you wouldn’t know until you met the mechanism!” With that said, Xan-I saw the silhouette of the woman turn away and walk back down the stairs of Mele’s. Xan-I continued to walk back to the front of the bar and Mele turned to say, “Well, you scared off another patron. It is okay! I think we should ring Conjurer and Charles and discuss what your next plans are.”

Nodding to Mele’s thought, Xan-I replied, “Yes. I believe I have overstayed my welcome, and I want to discuss visiting Hyanthra, wherever she may be.” Before connecting to Charles’s communication device, Mele asked, “Did you and Charles talk much about Hyanthra?” Xan-I automatically replied, “Based on how you asked me that question, he did tell me her reasoning for not joining the Inner Planet. Would you say that Hyanthra is a sensitive subject for Charles, Mele?” Mele emphasizingly nodded to Xan-I’s answers and said, “Believe me, kid- it is indeed sensitive, but also, Hyanthra has been known to not be too polite to strangers. Especially if they are mechanisms.” There was a stretched silence as Mele made her way back to her seat behind the bar. As she sat back down with her now empty plate of breakfast, she asked, “If you are going to suggest visiting Hyanthra, you best be escorted there with someone.” Mele then poured herself another cup of coffee, took a sniff of it, and then took a careful sip. Xan-I put one of its hands on its mouth speaker and said, “Well, Charles is out of the question, but I wonder if Conjurer would want to come with.” With an enthusiastic reply, Mele shouted, “Yes! He would love to! He was just talking about how he could be a Surfacer if he wanted to. Let’s get a hold of those two and see if we can have a meeting of the minds!” Soon after, Mele got in touch with both Conjurer and Charles to arrange a meeting later that morning.

* * * * * * *

Later that morning, a bumbling of various voices shook the foundation of Mele’s. A crowd was forming outside of Skyfish II, to seek answers about a rumored and sighted nomadic mechanism loitering around the Inner Planet. Some participants of the slow-growing mob were concerned and discussed that Mele was a ‘possible sleeper agent’ and a ‘possible threat’ for allowing Xan-I to occupy her space. Why had she condoned such a thing? As Xan-I remained standing by the bar, it worried that its presence was ruining Mele’s reputation. Returning from the back, Mele patted Xan-I on its back, “Don’t worry, Conjurer and Charles should be here soon, it will be okay.” Xan-I did not respond, it was becoming more and more concerned about the mass of people who were forming a barricade in front of this lovely woman’s establishment- an establishment that was inclusive and so inviting to everyone. From its catalog of feeling definitions, Xan-I was harboring what could be associated with guilt, partnered with worry. Thankfully for not much longer, Charles’s voice rang out through the mob outside, “Everyone! Listen here!” All other chatterings about the mechanism in Mele’s ceased, and all attention was on Charles- including Conjurer who was walking closely beside him. “I know that the presence of this Xan-I unit has brought you all much distress!” A couple of people interrupted with shouts of affirmation. “Alright! Alright! We get it! You all do not understand though, I ran my thorough examination inside its cranial dome, and it is indeed one of the original, untouched, mechanisms of before! Conjurer here was lucky enough to find it on the surface. This mechanism is a blessing in so many ways. We are meeting with it and Mele to figure out what our next steps are.”

The chattering echoed back alive after Charles’s announcement: “You all can start by sending it back to the surface!”, “Bash it to bits!”, “We are better off without that monstrosity!” These were just a few of the hurtful and arrogant sentiments the mob shouted out. As this was taking place, Xan-I looked over at Mele and sensed a great fire behind her eyes. Mele had had enough of these people she served and welcomed for so long, she rushed around from behind the bar, and at lightning speed, she slammed open her doors and addressed the mob.

“Now you all listen to me!” Mele’s thunderous voice sent a shockwave throughout the mob standing at the base of her stairs. “I said this last night, and I will say it again since some of you seem to take my sentimentality for granted. Who was there for you as we made our descent down to the Inner Planet? Who was there for you on the surface as Tyrant Vaine and his freaks threatened our lives? Who is always here for you to be safe and as happy as possible at her own expense? Have you all forgotten that I truly care about each of you? Why would I ever betray the relationship we have built together, and how could you ever think that low of me?!” The mob was silenced, just like children who were given an important lecture by their parents. There was visual resentment toward their comments on Mele now. In the moment, Mele retained the attention of everyone and continued on, “Now, if anyone calls Xan-I a monster, a thing, or anything negative, we are going to be in trouble. Xan-I is its name, and it may very well be able to help us take our planet back from the real monster that hides on the tetrahedron. Now, you all go away and let Charles, Conjurer, and I deal with the matter at hand! I will see you later, change your hearts!” Charles and Conjurer gently made their way through the scolded crowd- who were now slowly disbanding from the stairs to Mele’s acknowledging their behavior.

As Charles and Conjurer walked by Mele, they each gave her a warm hug as a token of their thanks and appreciation. Mele waved and smiled at everyone who was leaving before shutting and locking the doors for this important meeting. Charles and Conjurer walked into Mele’s and were both greeted by Xan-I waving at its friends, happy to see them again. “You sure caused quite a storm outside, Xan-I!” Exclaimed Conjurer, with a wide smile on his face. Charles and Mele both chuckled with tones of annoyance from the way everyone had acted earlier.

“I apologize again for the trouble I have brewed. I understand now why they are frightened of me, given everything that has happened. I know I am quite an anomaly for them.” Xan-I walked over to a table where it was unanimously decided the meeting would take place. This is no meeting to be had at the bar, for it was going to contain serious deliberations on what the company should do next.

As Charles took his seat, he asked, “So, does anyone have any ideas for what we should do next?” Charles looked at each member of the company to see if anyone had any pressing ideas. Only seconds went by before Mele said, “Xan-I, I think you should tell them what we were discussing briefly this morning.” Charles and Conjurer both immediately turned their eyes toward Xan-I. In the spotlight, Xan-I spoke, “I was talking to Mele about going to the surface and possibly visiting Hyanthra. I thought that maybe she would have additional wisdom to give us.”  Xan-I noticed Charles light up hearing Hyanthra’s name, and it also noticed that Charles gave a slight frown, knowing that he was not interested in visiting her- something that did not surprise Xan-I. Conjurer nodded and sat in his seat, strategizing on how to expand upon Xan-I’s idea. Xan-I added, “I did not talk to Mele about this, but I think that this visit to Hyanthra would not only be good to get a read on her and her people, but we could also do a general assessment of the surface to see if anything has or is happening that we may not have been aware of from the Inner Planet.”

This made Conjurer shake his head in agreement, and he said, “I would be willing to go with you, Xan-I. I have not gone past Spiral City for ages, and this is something that should have been done long ago. Hyanthra will not be welcoming to you, but I am sure she will be more understanding after we explain our story to her.”  Charles grimaced and replied, “Maybe. Hyanthra is not kind to mechanisms. She barely respects mine!” Mele cut in, “Even if she despises Xan-I, I agree with Conjurer, if Xan-I’s story is told, there is a good chance that she may be able to provide some insights on what could be done next. Hyanthra and the people of the second vertice do have the best vantage point right now, given that they have remained on the surface since we descended.” Taking a gentle sigh, Charles replied, “This is true. The worst-case scenario is that Hyanthra and her people will be presented with something special. If they see that Xan-I has the intention of rescuing the tetrahedron, they could be persuaded. However, I very well see her tossing everything to the wind and moving on. We must remember that she is physically and spiritually scarred from mechanisms. Especially from Tyrant Vaine.”

As Charles looked off into space to collect himself, Conjurer added to the conversation, “I will do whatever I can to convince her and make sure nothing happens to Xan-I. Our real goal now is to make Hyanthra aware of our new friend and our new mission. Would you say that’s correct, Xan-I?” The rest of the company’s stares reflected on the surface of Xan-I’s eye, and the mechanism answered, “Yes. I also have an idea for how we may be able to save our planet, but while we are on the surface, I need to see Lake 125.” The rest of the table sat up straight as their eyes widened. Mele chimed in, “Honey, do you remember anything I told you about our experience at Lake 125?” Conjurer also butted in with a curious tone, “What makes you want to see Lake 125, Xan-I?” Awaiting an answer, Conjurer put a hand through his beard and stared at Xan-I with wonder. Xan-I put one hand on the table and with its other hand, it pointed at Charles and said, “Yesterday, I got to look at a model of Xanropa that Charles made at his studio, and I have been thinking about it a lot since. Last night in my sleep cycle, I was studying the model again as if it were a human body and the first vertice were a cyst. If the first vertice is benign, if you will, we might be able to remove it from the tetrahedron. There would be no loss of life, no more destruction generated toward our planet, and we would be free of Tyrant Vaine, for good.”

The table sat in shock for a bit, they each were letting Xan-I’s idea flow through their consciousness. Xan-I looked at each of them but remained silent and stared at the table. It felt as if though it spoke too much and had just spoken a different language to them. To reassure the table, Xan-I said, “I know that my idea is just an idea, but I think we would be able to pull it off, but that is if I can confirm the status of the surface at Lake 125. There are some factors that would be needed for the plan to work properly.” Charles asked Xan-I, “What would those factors be for your hypothetical plan?” Following with curiosity, Mele and Conjurer looked toward Xan-I, who responded, “If the damage toward the surface were enough, we might be able to use the arcane abilities of Hyanthra and her warriors to slice through the tetrahedron. If there is no recent activity from Tyrant Vaine, we might be able to orchestrate the operation with no interference.” Conjurer asked, “Would we need to make some sort of seal between the slices of the tetrahedron?” Charles waited to see if Xan-I was going to answer, but after a few seconds he quickly took on Conjurer’s questions, “Not necessarily, we still have the debris and openings from the destruction of the third and fourth vertices. In fact, the damage to the tetrahedron’s surface is probably greater on the faces of Lake 132 and Lake 143. The surfaces by Lake 125, and 154 would be more dense, but it would not be impossible to still penetrate them.”

Mele asked Charles, “Could we not work on slicing the tetrahedron from the inside? That way we would not be interrupted by the tyrant.”

It seemed that table had been set on a proverbial fire of optimism, hope, and excitement from their ideas as possibilities of their freedom from Tyrant Vaine were sounding more possible.

After some more deliberation and questions among each other, the company settled on an agreed plan. Xan-I and Conjurer would first trek toward Lake 125 to see if there had been any recent activity from the tyrant before going to the second vertice to visit Hyanthra and her people. Meanwhile, Mele and Charles would recruit as many people from the Inner Planet as possible to aid them with separating the first vertice from inside the tetrahedron. This would not be an easy task, for they would have to rely on Xan-I and Conjurer’s coordinates, once they shared where the safest spot would be to dissect, they would send the position to Charles and Mele- who would then begin the interior separation. After they went through the plan a third time, Mele asked everyone at the table, “Okay then, are we sold on this idea? If anyone has anything else more to add, now is the time.” Charles, Conjurer, and Xan-I all then looked at each other and Mele with affirmation toward the plan they concocted, then Mele spoke, “Then that settles it, our plan shall be in motion starting tomorrow morning! All those who agree to this, say, ‘Aye’!” Simultaneously, Xan-I, Charles, and Conjurer each hollered and slammed their hands on the table with a sort of excitement, “Aye!”

Mele got up from the table and went to open her doors. Now that the company had had their important meeting, anybody that was not upset or scared of Mele’s and or Xan-I, could come inside. As Mele unlocked her doors, she was surprised to see a small group of people waiting to come in. They were, to Mele’s surprise, not angry nor threatening. The group of people all had their hands folded together and asked for forgiveness for the earlier events that took place with the mob. Mele was shocked and without hesitating said, “Oh, it’s fine! Get in here! You could have been here earlier!” As usual, it seemed, Mele welcomed the wary group with open arms.
As the group made their way into Mele’s they did not make a scene about Xan-I standing at the table with Charles and Conjurer. To make sure that the people knew they were safe, Charles waved and shouted, “Hey there! Welcome back!” This made the patrons smile, and the aura of the room felt as it should have in Mele’s cozy place. Conjurer and Charles stood up from their chairs and as Conjurer pushed his chair in he told Xan-I, “Hey, Xan-I, before we leave tomorrow, there is something that I think you would like to see. It is beautiful and actually has something to do with our plan. Can we meet at Charles’s studio tonight?” Xan-I raised its hands above its waist and said, “Why yes! I would love to, Conjurer!” Charles made a sound of suspicion and asked, “I wonder what you are going to show Xan-I, Conjurer?” Conjurer smirked and laughed to himself, “Well, maybe you should see it too then, my friend!” From the time that Conjurer invited Xan-I to Charles’s studio, Charles remembered something from the plan earlier that he wanted to say aloud. “Oh! Wait! Conjurer, Xan-I, if you two are going to be meeting by my studio, I have something to show you all in my studio. It is a prototype I have been building that may come as good use for your trek above tomorrow. I will explain more when I see you both tonight! I got to go run and make sure it is prepared for you both tomorrow. See you later!” Charles then lightly sprinted toward the front door, but before he left, he hugged and said goodbye to Mele. Charles thanked her for her help and then sprinted back to his studio to prepare his surprise for Charles and Xan-I that evening.

Following Charles’s move, as Conjurer stood up, he asked Xan-I, “Do you want to see a little more of the Inner Planet before our meeting tonight?” Xan-I walked over closer to Conjurer and said, “Yes! That would be quite nice!” Mele smiled at how caring Conjurer and Charles had been toward their new mechanized friend. “Well Mele, thanks so much. As always, you are such a delight. Don’t know where we would be without you!” Conjurer then gave Mele a hug, and as they let go of each other she said, “You two be careful! I will see you both bright and early tomorrow!” Conjurer and Xan-I then made their way through the entrance doors and down the stairs of Mele’s, going to sightsee the rest of the Inner Planet before their pending adventure up on Xanropa.

Conjurer and Xan-I walked down the street, in the opposite direction of Charles’s studio, passing by familiar buildings that mimicked the ones of Spiral City. These buildings seemed shorter and more friendly than the towering and eerie ones above. There were artificial trees next to almost every building, providing rich and nurturing oxygen and beautiful scenery. Unlike the illusion of Spiral City, the horizon and other shaped buildings were visible, making it feel more comfortable and casual. Conjurer pointed to a patch of turf with a few buildings standing in it and said, “See those buildings and this land? This is one of the farms of the Inner Planet. This farm provides various vegetation for all who live here. There are people constantly working all day and all night to make sure there is enough food at all times for the people.” Xan-I looked at each building and saw magnificent shaped plants, people pulling roots from the ground, and baskets of produce being collected for the Inner Planet. “Simply incredible! This looks just as good, if not better, than the farms on Xanropa!” Exclaimed Xan-I.

Parked in front of one of the buildings was a large vehicle that looked to have been modified to haul the plethora of baskets from the farm around the Inner Planet. Conjurer then directed Xan-I’s attention to the vehicle. “See that large vehicle there, Xan-I? That is an old vehicle of Tyrant Vaine’s harvesting patrols. We were able to deactivate it and transform it into something beautiful and productive for the Inner Planet. Normally, the back would not be opened up for loading supplies, they look exactly like this but the back of the vehicle is closed off. We want to watch out for these when we leave tomorrow, they are nothing but trouble.” Xan-I turned to Conjurer and asked, “What makes them so dangerous? Are they not just mechanisms that haul debris?” Conjurer lifted a finger into the air and replied, “They do just that, however, they are also predators. See that large shovel-like item on the front bumper of the vehicle? Normal harvesting patrols use that to consume any material into the back portion of the vehicle. Whatever it cannot swallow, there are usually some mechanisms that follow to keep its gluttonous act rampant. This one down here has had its esophagus sealed up so that we can use it to load more supplies onto it. The vehicles above do not stop for anything; their prime motive is to consume any and all materials that lay in front of it. So if we see one, we either need to steer clear of it, or do whatever it takes to deactivate it.” Finally learning more about the harvesting patrols from Conjurer, Xan-I knew that their mission was truly happening. Exciting and nervous electricity ran through its circuitry taking in all of this information.

Conjurer spoke through Xan-I’s moment of trance, “Sorry to bring more subjects up about our trek tomorrow, I just thought you should know.” Xan-I waved its arms to clear any negative energy between it and Conjurer, “No no! It is okay, this is very helpful. The more I know, the better for both of us, right?” Conjurer nodded in agreement and said, “Well, let’s continue the brief tour! We still have some time to kill!” The two then walked away from the farm and continued sightseeing the rest of the Inner Planet.

It takes about eight hours to walk around the entirety of the Inner Planet. Which was plenty of time for Conjurer and Xan-I to spend before meeting with Charles that evening. As the two walked by more homes and buildings, Xan-I asked Conjurer, “Conjurer, I have not had a chance to ask this yet; why do you go by Conjurer?” The two had walked outside another grouping of homes and were standing in front of a park that had a small pond waving in its center. Conjurer walked a few steps closer to a sculpture that looked like an hourglass and put his folded arms on top of it. Facing the pond, he answered Xan-I, “During the time of Tyrant Vaine’s emergence, I had had many troubles with my identity. Back then, I felt that I didn’t belong with any group of people- as I mentioned before, I was often ridiculed for my use of the arcane and seen only as a silly guy. So as I got older, I decided that I didn’t want to be associated with my real name that people would use to make jokes out of, so I disassociated with the society of Xanropa and went by ‘Conjurer’ so that I could escape myself and be happy with who I was.” The pond continued to wave and twinkle as Xan-I waited to say anything to Conjurer. Conjurer sighed and continued, “The day that Xanropa became ruined, I could not even begin to bare carrying my old identity with me. My former self died that day, and I don’t think I will ever be that person I once was.” Xan-I interrupted, “You can be whoever you wish to be, Conjurer. Your identity is your’s to solidify.” Conjurer turned from the pond and looked at Xan-I, “Thanks, that does mean a lot coming from you. My hope is that one day, I can feel at peace enough to actually give myself a name that feels fitting and just.” Xan-I stood in silent affirmation with Conjurer as they saw some larger birds begin to fly down and land upon the pond. As the birds descended into their spiral down to the pond, Conjurer said, “This is one of my favorite things to watch, birds landing on their flight in the most beautiful of places. Who would have thought they could find themselves in such a remarkable position?” Conjurer tapped the hourglass with his hand and motioned for Xan-I that they were continuing on their stroll around the Inner Planet. They walked beside hills, gave their respects as they walked by the tranquil cemetery, and enjoyed the rest of the scenery that the Inner Planet had to offer. Xan-I had noted that the Inner Planet felt more organic and alive than Xanropa. There was much more green, more organic-looking landscapes, and the inhabitants had done such a wonderful job with how they displayed the copious amounts of artificial trees (they were not just the same model of trees as above, there was a visual distinction among them). This planet felt alive inside the shell of a planet that had perished.

Daylight was beginning to transition as the two made their way around the planet. They were very close to Charles’s studio. In the sky,  Xan-I noticed a large meteorite that hung in the sky like a chandelier, it shone and lit up the interior of the tetrahedron. It was so close but quite obviously far away from them. As Xan-I was staring at the shimmering entity in the late evening sky, it remembered something about Xanropa’s history. “Wait, is that crystalline meteorite of Xanropa?!” Conjurer looked at Xan-I, and as he put his fingers up to his lips, he whispered back, “Charles is going to show it to you in a while, and when he shows it to you, you need to pretend to be surprised as you are now!” Xan-I looked away from the meteorite and tried not to return its gaze to the gorgeous rock that floated above them.

Night had finished blanketing the Inner Planet as the two made it to Charles’s studio. As Conjurer and Xan-I entered the studio, Charles covered something that was sitting on his desk with his body. “Hello, my friends! Did you have a good rest of your day?” Conjurer looked at Charles with eager curiosity as Xan-I stood and waited to see what Charles wanted to show them. As hard as it was not to ask about what was behind Charles, Conjurer replied, “We did, we strolled around the planet doing some sightseeing.” Xan-I chimed in, “It was refreshing and informative to see all of the Inner Planet!” Charles smiled and said, “That is good to hear! As you said, it is important that you can now visualize the rest of the planet for future purposes.” Conjurer spoke up, “Okay, Charles, I need to know what you got there!” Charles put his hands up to Conjurer and Xan-I and motioned for them to quiet down, “Okay! Okay! Let’s get on with why I brought you both here tonight.” Charles then slowly moved to the right, revealing a shiny bird. It had a circular base with featherless wings and an ample neck that connected to a head that had minimal facial details. As Xan-I and Conjurer marveled at what Charles had finished making, Charles spoke, “This is a prototype mechanism that I will be using to, in a way, be with you all while remaining down here. I call it, Silver Swan, it does not have as much sentience as you Xan-I, but it is programmed to follow you both and will transmit video and audio back to me.” Conjurer interjected, “Can you communicate through it?” Charles smiled and raised a finger into the air, “I was just going to say, I can talk through it as if it were another communication device.” Conjurer smiled and nodded at Silver Swan, admiring this new companion that he and Xan-I would have on their adventure in the morning.

Xan-I turned and said to Charles, “This is incredible, Charles! It is such a beautiful and practical mechanism! This will be of great benefit!” Charles did a small bow of gratitude to Xan-I’s kind words and replied, “Well, it is thanks to you both and Mele, as we were talking about the plan to separate the first vertice from Xanropa, I was thinking that if we needed to know the coordinates of where to begin the cutting, it would be nice to also have visuals of the surface. That way, we below may be aware of what is going on up there to help us better prepare and operate this removal.” Xan-I and Conjurer stood and were both not surprised by how efficient and thoughtful Charles was about their plan. It was another affirmation that Charles was a legendary vertice leader of Xanropa.

“When you both prepare to leave tomorrow, I will have Silver Swan ready and activated for you first thing in the morning. Now that it is dark out, I thought I would show you something else, Xan-I. Conjurer is used to this next thing I am about to show you, but I am not sure if you have seen this before.” Conjurer immediately turned to Xan-I and gave it a glare that whispered back the directions of acting surprised again as they all made their way back outside. As they walked out of the studio and into the indigo black of night, the sky was now much more dramatic than when Conjurer and Xan-I arrived at Charles’s studio. The crystalline meteorite at this time in the night showed much more value throughout its surface and felt more like a moon than before. Xan-I did not need to pretend to be amazed; this experience was much more awe-inducing than when it and Conjurer first saw it. The little time that had passed made such a big difference in how the meteorite commanded the night sky. “That is the crystalline meteorite that Xanropa was founded upon. Isn’t it so beautiful?” Xan-I responded, “This goes beyond my programming. There are no words that can justify this sight.” The three continued looking at the meteorite, and Charles said while pointing at it, “Beyond the meteorite is the first vertice, can you believe that? That the source of Xanropa’s pain is behind this source of visual comfort?” This sent chills through Xan-I’s wires. Conjurer spoke, “It will be hard to not see the meteorite for a while, but when we get to the surface, we will have to stargaze. I always find that looking into the night sky is a source of problem solving, spiritual healing, and a magical experience. Charles exclaimed, “Me too!” Xan-I may not have understood how humans connect to their souls, but it did understand how the night sky made them feel comfortable and whimsical. The three stayed out for some time enjoying the sight before Charles invited them to sleep at his studio. Eventually, they each retired to the studio to rest before the beginning of their plan in the morning. Xan-I pulled up the image of the meteorite inside its lens, putting itself to sleep as it stared into the intoxicating beauty of the crystalline meteorite.