The airport was as massive as anyone could expect from an airport. It was private owned, if Melmarc remembered correctly. Its owner was a man who had begun his career in some tech industry. He couldn't remember. What he did remember, however, was that the man was not Gifted. Most large organizations in the country had their ownership traced all the way to family businesses or one or two Gifted who'd grown filthy rich from Delving and had chosen to diversify in their resignation years.

The airport was busy with people flying in and out of the state. This time of the year, it wasn't very crowded. People didn't travel very much except on holidays.

Checking in had been easy. There weren't much of lines to queue at and stand for hours on end. People put in their ticket numbers at the check-in point, place their luggage, and that was it. Their carry-on luggage was inspected in two stages. The first was a machine that scanned for more than just physical contents. Made by [Crafter]s, it analyzed every facet of your luggage. Even poisonous substances were noted. If you had a single pill that should not be on the flight or was banned for any reason, it would capture it.

The second was an inspection by actual people. Melmarc always theorized that the second inspection level had nothing to do with necessity. It was just a way to make sure that magi-tech did not run people out of jobs.

There was also the distrust element, though. No one believed that anything without an actual human brain could be without flaws. The human employees were in charge of correcting the one percent possible error.

Their mother was with them throughout the process. On a video call, Ninra talked about varying things while she tagged along.

Done with everything, they sat comfortably in the waiting area, watching people pass by while others waited as well. Melmarc and Ark got a few glances here and there. It was a natural response to their heights. Now that they were taller, they could only expect more glances.

"Hi," a young mother with blond hair, tired eyes, and three little boys tugging on her from all angles greeted their mother with a wave.

Their mother raised her head from her video call with Ninra and gave the woman a bright smile. "Hi."

"I just wanted to ask some questions," she said very politely.

Their mother nodded. "Sure. Fire away."

"Oh, thank you." She sighed as if a burden had been lifted off her shoulders. "Are these two your kids?"

Ark sat up straighter, pinned a confused look on his face, then pointed at himself.

Their mother smacked his hand. To the woman, she said, "Yes, there are."

"Experienced mother to a new mother of three boys," the woman continued. "How do you keep them from killing themselves?"

That got a chuckle from their mother. Ninra laughed at her end of the call. Melmarc heard her say something about accepting fate, but he doubted the woman heard her.

"Old mother to new mother," their mother answered. "You can't. They just have a way of almost killing themselves. I think they're designed to just keep your blood pressure up." She shrugged. "The good news is that at some point you stop worrying about them killing themselves and start worrying about them killing you."

"I never get a good night's sleep with these ones," the woman replied, taking the empty sit next to their mother. "And it's not like they want my attention. They just need it or I'll wake up one morning and find myself with only two sons."

"Where's their dad?" their mother was all smiles.

"We stopped by to see my mother," the woman answered. "He had to stay behind for work. We're on our way back home."

For reasons unknown to Melmarc, her children ignored her then.

Three small boys, the oldest, barely up to five years, were suddenly standing in front of him and Ark. They were staring.

Ark smirked. "Wanna bet this is going to be a long wait?"

Melmarc couldn't remember ever spending time around children. Still, he had seen enough movies to know how exactly it was supposed to work.

One of the children smiled, his mouth stretching very wide. Melmarc sensed mischief.

"The trick," his mother was telling the woman, "is in figuring out which one actually wants to try and defy death and which one is just along for the ride. Control the death defier and you'll be fine. If you can't control him," she looked pointedly at Ark, "then hope to all that you can that the other one is only tagging along to make sure the death defier keeps defying death."

Melmarc chuckled and one of the children grabbed one of his fingers. He paused, head cocking to the side as he looked at the boy. The boy looked up at him wide-eyed. He didn't look curious, just very impressed with whatever he was seeing.

Mana particles clung to the boy. Green, blues, and red traced themselves along his skin. He had the most mana particles attached to him than his brothers. He was also the only one of the three that was interested in him.

"Mel, look," Ark said chuckling.

Having never seen his brother associate with children, Melmarc was inclined to see what was happening.

A single glance had him smiling. One of the boys, the oldest, was sitting on Ark's shoulders, both legs wrapped around his neck as if trying to strangle him. He was pulling on Ark's ears as if they were reins. The second boy hung onto Ark's leg just below the knee and Ark was using him for leg raises.

All three of them were full of smiles. Ark was having just as much fun as the kids. Their mother spared a slightly worried look at them.

"Don't worry," their mother assured her. "There's nobody more capable of handling death defiers than him."

"Because he's the death defier among your kids?" the woman asked, a small amount of her worry slipping from her face.

"That, and he has a hobby of keeping others very far away from dangerous situations."

Ark had one hand on the leg wrapped around his neck in case the boy lost his grip. As for the one on his leg, anyone who paid any real attention would be able to tell how careful he was with his leg raises.

A tug on his finger brought Melmarc's attention back to the boy still with him. The child gestured with other hand. It was a grabbing motion. Melmarc assumed it was an invitation to come closer. He obeyed, bending forward until he was face to face with the boy.

"Hi," he said in a friendly voice. "How are… ow?"

The boy grabbed him by the lips and was pulling. It didn't really hurt, but it did take Melmarc by surprise. The pulled harder, meeting Melmarc's gaze, never breaking it.

Melmarc cocked a brow, completely confused. The action felt more curious than malicious.

"Aston!" the boy's mother scolded.

The boy froze like a prey caught in the den of a predator. He turned his head very slowly and looked at his mother. His hold on Melmarc's lips waned but he did not let go. Melmarc could retrieve his lips if he wanted now.

He didn't.

The boy's mother was giving him a piercing gaze.

"Oh, let the boy be," Melmarc's mother said, smiling as if the boy was the most beautiful thing in the world. "That one's very good at staying alive and keeping others alive. You can't find better hands for your kids to be in."

It took a moment, but the piercing gaze ended and the mother sighed.

"Besides," Melmarc's mother said. "That one isn't all that entertaining. Aston will get bored of him soon."

Melmarc rolled his eyes, smiling. He must have looked a funny sight doing it while in the clutches of the child because Ark laughed. Ark vibrated in his laughter and the children on him laughed along.

The young mother looked relieved.

The child's hold on Melmarc tightened. Melmarc returned his attention to big doe-y eyes. The grip tightened, harder and harder. As hard as a boy the child's age could. Big doe-y eyes narrowed to confused eyes, then they changed to something else.

Melmarc's eyes narrowed, trying to figure out what was going on. He could not place the look. A moment after, he did. The child was about to cry.

Why? He thought in mild panic. I'm the one that supposed to be in pain.

"Ow?" he tried.

Narrowed eyes lightened a little. Still, they remained suspicious.

"Ow? Ow?" Melmarc tried again. The suspicion left, now the eyes looked motivating.

Is that it? Melmarc thought.

"Ow, ow, ow, ow," he muttered, the sound spilling from both sides of his mouth as the boy clamped it down in the middle.

Mottivating eyes turned to happy eyes. Happy eyes became laughter.

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"There you go," Ark said. "You're getting the hang of it. That's how you—Ow."

The mother of the children gasped as the child on Ark's head poked him in the eye and started laughing.

They spent the rest of their wait in this manner. Melmarc had one child to himself. The child poked and clamped and sometimes tried to nibble. Every now and again, he would allow the child his whims and play along. Sometimes he stopped him and tried to steer the fun in a different direction.

All three children had a soft head of blond hair and large blue eyes. One had a habit of sucking his thumb that always made his mother sigh in defeat.

Time went on, passing by in a sprint where it had once been a stroll. The children sucked the energy out of Melmarc even though he only had to spend time with one. It was funny how when one of the others tried to come over to him, the brother was not a fan. The true comedy was in the fact that, according to the young mother, the one with Melmarc was the one that liked to share and get his other brothers into death defying problems.

Melmarc wondered if the child's attraction to him had something to do with how many mana particles attached themselves to the boy. They were at least twice the number that attached themselves to the boy's brothers.

You're seeing magic related possibilities in simple things, Melmarc told himself. The kid just enjoyed tormenting you alone. The end.

It wasn't long when they called their boarding. Melmarc rose to his feet, getting up from his chair. Ark and his mother did the same. Ark's companions clung to him as if he was a tree, dangling high of the ground. The one that had enjoyed being attached to his leg clambered all the way up until it hung only by its grip on the fabric of his shirt over Ark's shirt.

Ark was having too much fun.

"Alright, kids," their mother said in that loving but firm tones mothers and female kindergarten teachers seemed to practice together. "Say bye to the nice uncles."

Standing beside their mother, the woman was at least a head shorter. She glanced at their mother and smiled.

"The height must be strong in the family," she joked.

"You should see their father," their mother joked back, laughing along with the woman. "He's built like a tree."

Melmarc's child stood beside him suddenly on his best behavior, holding onto Melmarc's smallest finger. Melmarc had to bend a little so the boy could stand comfortably.

Before long, the woman had gathered her children, thanked their mother tremendously for the advice—whatever she had given her—and Melmarc and Ark for their patience with her kids.

Then she was gone.

"Alright," their mother said. "The time has come for me to let you go."

Ark smiled mischievously. "You'll miss me."

Their mother barked a short laugh. "Ha! I'll miss Mel. With you gone, my blood pressure will finally come down."

She gave him a hug. It was strong and tight. Ark smiled through the entire hug. After a while, she smacked him on the back.

"Hug me back or I'm not paying your tuition."

Dissonant.

Ark laughed. "I'm on a scholarship, mom."

"Then no allowance."

Dissonant.

He hugged her back. "I plan on getting a part time work."

Their mom released him, stepped back, then held his face in both hands. "Anyone mess with your brother, you beat them up. Deal?"

Ark nodded. "I'll try not to kill anyone."

"Good boy." She drew him in for a forehead kiss, then whispered something Melmarc didn't hear in his ear, before releasing him.

Melmarc couldn't understand why she'd chosen to do that. She had to know that Ark would still tell him if he asked.

She moved over to Melmarc and he opened his arms for a hug.

Her smile widened and her eyes grew rheumy as she hugged him. He hugged her back and pressed the side of his face against the top of her hair.

He would miss her. She and their dad were usually the ones leaving not the other way around.

His mother's grip on him was tight, as if she would rather die than let him go. He heard her sniffle against his chest. It was a while and two sniffles longer before she let go of him.

"Live a little, okay?" she told him.

Melmarc nodded, knowing he was likely not going to. "I'll try."

His mother nodded, accepting the reply. She reached up and took his face in both hands.

"Be good," she added, kissed him on the forehead. "And keep your brother from killing anybody."

Melmarc smiled wider, nodding. "I can't make any promises."

"Why am I being tossed around like a rag doll?" Ninra asked from her end of the phone.

Ark chuckled. "Maybe it's because you're a rag doll. Ever considered that?"

"Eat an expired cheese," Ninra retorted.

Their mother sighed, holding the phone up so that everyone could see her. "Don't be rude to your sister, Ark."

"Ha!" Ninra barked in victory.

Their mother rubbed her forehead with her thumb and forefinger. "Please don't stoop to Ark's level, Nin."

It was a little funny because through their time with the young mother and her children, she had still been on the call. She'd simply been going about her day. The Lockwoods did that sometimes. They'd end up on video calls and just keep living their lives not necessarily interacting with each other on the call.

Now Ninra could see all three of them. Before they'd met the mother and her children, she had looked simple. Now, she was dressed with make up on.

"Hot date?" their mom asked.

"I'd tell you, but I won't." Ninra gave her an innocent smile. "Now, brothers mine. Soon to be rulers of their own individual worlds. Mel, my favorite brother and soon to be Lord and Master."

Ark snorted. "I'll invade just so that I get to be your Lord and Master."

Ninra rolled her eyes. "As I was saying before the dog barked," Ark took on a faux look of hurt. She ignored him and went on. "Mel, live a little, make friends. God! I cannot overemphasize this enough, get a girlfriend or a girl that's just your friend. Boys your age shouldn't have zero female friends. Now, Ark. Please follow school rules and regulations," she begged. "I know you're a rebel at heart, but please do it for your brother's sake, if for no other reason than that. That way he doesn't have to deal with rumors of the kind of monster his brother is and how he's probably some kind of monster too."

Ark opened his mouth to say something, but Melmarc beat him to it.

"I don't mind," he said with a shrug.

Ark grinned. "See?"

"You're supposed to be helping me not motivating him, Mel," she groaned while their mother smiled. "Ark, also tone it down on the girls. I know you'll say it's not your fault because they keep on flocking to you but 'No' is a word in the dictionary. Use it. Thanks for always standing up for Mel, don't stop." She paused, tapping her cheek. "What else? I feel like I'm missing something."

"Books?" Ark supplied.

"No." Ninra shook her head. "You're intelligent, just lazy when it comes to books. Telling you to focus on your books will be a waste of my time. Mel probably has that handled."

"I do," Mel confirmed.

"I've got nothing… Oh yeah," she said in realization. "Be careful. And if any of you gets into that tournament thingy, please win. I won't be able to show my face anywhere if there's videos of my brothers of the internet losing matches."

"You should be telling them not to join the tournaments," their mother complained.

"Ruler of the world and ruler of the underworld? Please," their sister scoffed. "Violence is part of their life. They might as well be wise about it and good at it. I've got to go now. Love you guys. And tell dad that the next time I'm traveling, he's entering the airport with me. It's non-negotiable."

Their goodbyes were quick. Ninra left the call and their mother walked them the rest of the way.

"I don't see why Uncle Fendor couldn't just portal us," Ark said conversationally as they drew closer to where their mother would have to leave them.

"Because there are actual portal laws that prevent the very limited number of people with portal powers from portalling all over the place," Melmarc said. "Also, Uncle Fendor is not out personal transport service."

Ark shrugged. "I'm just saying."

They hugged their mother one last time before parting ways. She stood and watched them until they had to take a turn. When they did, she disappeared out of sight.

The rest of the boarding process was simple. Ultimately, it was a stroll to the boarding gate and entry into the plane.

The beauty of the stewardesses was not lost to Melmarc or Ark. The attention paid to their heights was not lost either.

It wasn't long before they were seated and waiting for take off. The plane was filled to the brim, which was surprising considering the destination was Tatelat, the Gifted capital.

The lady with the children entered after them, leaving Melmarc wondering why the delay when she'd left before them. She caught sight of them and waved with an appreciative smile. Ark and Melmarc waved back. Then she tapped her kids and pointed. The children saw them and waved, smiling as if they were seeing very important people.

One of the children had a smile that was a little too mischievous. Like a child that was more likely to shave your hair in your sleep than actually cuddle next to you.

"I've got a question," Ark said when the woman finally took her place in their seats somewhere in front of them.

Melmarc was putting his wireless earphones in. "I'm listening."

"That lady and her children are going to Tatelat, so she must be Gifted, right?"

"Can't say." Melmarc ran through the knowledge of what he knew of the capital city. The mana particles hadn't reacted to the mother and still didn't, so he figured she was not Gifted. It wasn't like he had a template on how it worked. "Mom's probably not Gifted."

"And all three kids can't be Gifted," Ark added.

Melmarc remembered how the mana particles had clung to the child that had played with him. What were the chances that it meant the boy would be Gifted when he grew up?

"All three probably aren't," he confirmed as everyone was finally seated, and the attendants began doing their regular safety demonstrations. "Since she said they are going back home, she's either married to a Gifted, or she has very strong ties to a Gifted living there. Most people say that Tatelat only has powerful Gifted in it, but it's more about its major population is Gifted and their dependents. From what Delano said, people from simple Gifted families tend to move out when they are of age."

Ark nodded sagely. "I guess that makes sense. Cute kids, though. Even if one of them did try to blind me."

Melmarc agreed.

It wasn't long before they were ready to take off. Melmarc sat back and played a track from his playlist, it was an instrumental by a pianist. Ark took out the magazine in front of him and skimmed through it. It wasn't long before he opened his phone and started reading a comic.

The plane took to the air.

Their trip to Tatelat had begun.

…

The plane was steady in the air. So far there was no turbulence. It was to be expected because only airlines that could not afford airplanes with any form of magical enhancements experienced turbulence. This airline was not one of them.

People had begun their quiet mummering. The seatbelt sign was turned off. The music in Melmarc's ear played accompaniment to the conversations around him.

People lie a lot, he thought as every once in a while, his brain informed him of something dissonant.

In the last few minutes, he had also learnt something about his ability to sense dissonance. On the plane, each time he sensed it, he knew where it was coming from. At least he knew the exact piece of information he had heard that was dissonant.

A specific dissonant conversation, however, caught his attention.

"Oh, there's no need to worry about it," a man in front said to the mother they'd spent time with. He was handsome and smiling pleasantly. "I tell you flights used to scare me once upon a time. Now, they don't."

"It's just the kids," the woman said. "If they don't fall asleep, they just become wrecks."

"Then it's a good thing they are asleep," the man said. "So what takes you to Tatelat?"

"Just going back home from a short vacation. You?"

"Work?"

Dissonant.

"I'm Gifted, so my company is sending me over to liaise with another."

Dissonant.

Melmarc doubted being Gifted was what was dissonant. Every Gifted had a method of identification that could be verified. Flying within the country, non-Gifted presented any identification card and Gifted were to present their Gifted identification card with or without other means of identification.

If you were a registered Gifted anywhere, at least one of your normal IDs would have it on record. It was rare to have a government issued ID that did not.

Which means he's not liaising with any company.

"I tell you, I can't wait to get down," the man said, still smiling. "The jet lag is going to be insane."

Dissonant.

Melmarc frowned. What was going on?

"The kids will be chaotic once we're home," the woman said with a sigh, then rolled her eyes. "I'm really looking forward to that."

"At least they'll get home."

Melmarc stiffened.

Dissonant.

He grabbed Ark's wrist a little too hard.

"Ow?" Ark looked at him. "Excuse me, superhuman."

Melmarc kept his eyes on the man. "Ark."

"I'm listening," Ark answered. "I would appreciate it if you don't break my wrist, though."

Melmarc released his hand very slowly.

"Thank you. So, what's up?" Ark asked.

"I think we might have a problem."

In front, the man was still talking with the woman. He smiled, running a hand through his black hair.

"I'm just saying that this is a safe airline," he was saying.

The woman nodded. "I know, right."

"So, you shouldn't be worried. If anything, just know that nothing is going to go wrong on this flight. At least you've got nothing to worry about with me…"

Melmarc held his breath unconsciously.

"You," the man finished. "Have my word."

Dissonant.

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