31 Present Day

"Damn," Professor Olson said.

"Yeah," Null responded.

The three of them sat in silence for a while. Raven Clof reached for his tea and took a sip. He sighed, it had long since gone cold. And he preferred something warm after such a conversation. He glanced at the time on his watch. Kyrie should have come back by now. "I'll be right back."

Null nodded absentmindedly. He was still lost in his thoughts and memories of a time when his family had been whole, as it had been when he was younger.

Olson nodded as well. He was checking his messages since his holo-watch had gone off during their conversation.

As Raven Clof stood and made his way towards the exit of the living room, Olson said, "Ren should be here any minute."

"Alright." Raven Clof glanced at Null. Should they postpone their talk? Perhaps. Raven Clof was also concerned about Kyrie. If he'd overheard their talk, he may need time.

Raven Clof caught Olson's eye and nodded towards Null. Olson nodded and gave Raven Clof a smile that said he'd be glad to check on Null.

♢ ♢ ♢

When Raven Clof found Kyrie he was in the laundry room. Kyrie's knees were pulled up to his chest and his back was against the cool wooden wall. His head rested in his hands. "How much did you hear?"

"Enough."

Kyrie's eyes were closed as he tried to hide how they watered, and as he kept a tight grip on his ability. He'd felt like something was strange when he'd met with Null. But he hadn't realized Null was him, M&N. Kyrie had believed the dreams that'd left him feeling safe and loved had been just that, dreams. He hadn't realized M&N was a real person and someone he'd met many times.

Raven Clof nodded, even though Kyrie couldn't see it. "How are you doing?"

Kyrie opened one eye and watched Raven Clof through his bangs. "I… I don't know. I…" Kyrie thought of his father, the one he'd always known. The one he'd last seen covered in blood. "I'm not ready to face him. Not after…" The image was there, and it wasn't leaving quickly, most of them never did.

Raven Clof sat down next to Kyrie. "That's alright." He turned to look at Kyrie. "Do you want me to postpone our talk with Ren and Null?"

Kyrie sat back against the wall and stared at the ceiling as he thought. His right hand drifted to his left wrist. Yet, he draped both arms over his knees, after his right hand had brushed his scarred wrist.

Kyrie wasn't sure how to face Null. He – he wasn't ready to have a talk with Null about the figments of his dreams. Nor was he ready bring those memories back in full. He was scared it'd change him. And he'd had enough change as it was.

Kyrie tapped a finger against his knee. Null was a Guild Master. He had to be extremely busy. And he'd dropped everything to come here. Kyrie stopped tapping his finger and shook his head. Null had faced him several times when Kyrie hadn't remembered him.

Kyrie stood and looked at Raven Clof. "Let's go. We're all here, so now seems right."

Raven Clof stood up and smiled at Kyrie. "All right."

♢ ♢ ♢

When Raven Clof and Kyrie returned they found Ren seated in the other chair. Kyrie reclaimed his seat next to Olson and Raven Clof claimed the window seat.

Ren glanced around the room filled with quiet, tension, and a sorrow so thick an empath could drown in it. "Which city did we lose?"

Raven Clof chuckled before he said, "Sorry. We haven't lost any more cities."

Null quickly steered the conversation to the topic he and Raven Clof wished to discuss. "We were wondering how much you know about the Academy LegendSlayer tourney and Laserath's selection method?"

Ren frowned as she looked at Null, they were hiding something. She glanced a Taru. Hopefully, it related to Kyrie's weapon and wasn't something worse.

Kyrie shrugged and took a moment to make sure his voice didn't crack, "Not much. All I know is that it's annual and popular." That and his older brother and sister had participated several times, but Kyrie was never allowed to go.

Null repressed a sound somewhere between a growl and a sigh. The Academy tourneys were just one more thing Kyrie had missed out on.

Professor Olson turned towards Kyrie, "Each academy can select five individual participants per grade year that haven't selected a major or are zero-year students. For first-years and above, five teams are chosen from each year. The selection method of the original five varies between years at Kondaira Academy."

Raven Clof nodded and continued, "We can't tell you the selection method beforehand, but the first selection is in two weeks."

Ren narrowed her eyes in curiosity as she watched Raven Clof. "Then why call us here?"

Raven Clof glanced at Null, before he turned back to Kyrie and Ren. "Because we need your help. Both of you."

Null leaned forward as he said, "Laserath is in rough shape financially. We've been losing a lot of our neighboring cities." Null paused as he felt a shadow pass over his heart. A shadow concealing a cruel glimmering light. A light of happiness that Kyrie was finally free of his clan. "You've both experienced that first hand."

Ren nodded solemnly and Kyrie reached for his left wrist. This time he stopped before he touched his bare wrist.

Ren focused on Null as she spoke, "How do the tournaments help? Are we hosting it?"

"Not this year," Null responded. "But winning the tournament gets the Academy more support from the main branch of the LegendSlayer guild. And increases the percentage of the total mission reward money they pay the city."

Raven Clof took over when Null paused. "On a good year, we make it into the second part of the tournament. Last year was really good for us. James and a senior team both made it into the second part. Unfortunately, both groups were eliminated at the end of the first round." Raven Clof paused and held Ren's gaze then Kyrie's. "What we need is simple. We need you two to take the tournament seriously and to do your best, within the rules of the competition." Raven Clof paused and focused on Kyrie. "And the rules we gave Kyrie regarding his weapon."

Kyrie nodded and said, "I'll do my best, safely."

Ren was watching Null. It didn't fit. Why have Laserath's LegendSlayer guild master here to tell the two of them something Headmaster Raven Clof or Professor Olson could have said? Ren spoke with a barely concealed edge of danger, "And, what, exactly do you get out of this?"

Null smiled, Ren was a sharp one. "The Laserath guild branch will get more funding and a decrease in cost for bringing specialists in for missions. It will also get higher priority for selection of missions and an increase in safer missions that can be given to the Academy and new LegendSlayers." Null met gazes with Raven Clof. "Kondaira Academy and I have a deal to increase work experience opportunities. Clof, you can share our deal if you want."

Raven Clof nodded, there was no reason to keep such a simple deal hidden. "The guild is getting the labor of the students at a decreased cost. Everyone who participates in the mission will get paid. It'll just be slightly less than if the mission was taken normally. And we both get student LegendSlayers that are more likely to survive their missions."

Ren nodded and said, "Then I'll do my best to help."

Null watched Kyrie with a guilt he'd learned to conceal over many years. "We also need the two of you to help make sure the missions get completed and as many of the students come back alive as possible." Null paused for a moment as he watched the two young adults before him. "If you have to choose between the missions and the students," Null wanted to say they should choose the student's, but they didn't know – couldn't know how a mission would change from the contents of the request. "Chose the option you think you can live with."

Ren and Kyrie looked at each other and nodded.

Kyrie turned from Ren, glanced at Taru next to him then faced Null. For the first time after he'd overheard the story of his – their lives together, he felt calm and ready to act. But not ready to tell Null he knew. "When's the first mission?"

Professor Olson spoke from his spot next to Kyrie, "In three weeks. We leave a week after the first part of the selection." Olson had already selected his students' first mission.

Ren said as she grinned like a cat that had caught a fish. "The first part?"

Raven Clof said, "Yes. We have several chances for the selected representatives to change. That way we can make sure we're sending our strongest and or our most cooperative teams to represent us."

Ren slumped a bit in disappointment, her fish had escaped. Before anyone else spoke Ren shrugged off her disappointment.

Kyrie leaned forward. "If that's all, we should go."

Raven Clof and Null glanced at each other. Since Raven Clof appeared to have nothing more to say, Null spoke, "Good luck."