Eddie felt his rear end fall onto something soft. His bed. Thomas's arms supported his back as he prevented him from lying down.

"What the—"

"Before you say anything, just let me rest. I just need sleep—"

"No, no, don't close your eyes!" Thomas cut him off. Pure panic laid his voice as he muttered and cursed, unsure of what to do.

"Thomas," Eddie spoke softly.

"Oui?"

"Bring me to the guest room and ask for a guy named Jon."

"Can you walk?"

"Oui."

Eddie heaved his heavy body off the bed. He could not see anything. He dragged one foot across the floor. He wobbled.

"You can't walk. I'll get something—euh—sit."

Eddie heard Thomas scurry to one side of his room. The sound of plastic wheels rolling across marble grew louder. He felt something bump against his bed. His chair.

Thomas wrapped his arms around Eddie, lifted him, and seated him. Eddie leaned back as Thomas escorted him out of his room. A short while later, he heard a soft ping as the elevator opened its doors.

Thomas wheeled him into the elevator. "Which floor?"

"Second."

He heard a button being pressed. They arrived a few seconds later. The sound of a grown woman screaming in Italian greeted their ears. Eddie gulped—Letizia was awake. She must've caught Stella practicing.

"Who's that—"

"Don't let her see us," Eddie interrupted him. "Just take me to the guest room, far end. You've been there before."

Eddie's body jerked as Thomas pushed the chair forward. They passed by the music room. Eddie knew that Stella turned on the lights whenever she practiced. He turned his head to glimpse the scene that was brewing. He gasped.

He saw nothing but black.

"What is it?" Thomas murmured.

"I-I can't see. Everything's just black."

Thomas swore in exclamation. "You need help real bad, right now."

They reached a door a few moments later; Eddie could tell since Thomas stopped pushing his chair. He heard Thomas knocking on the door. He heard it creak as it swung open.

"Aidez-moi s'il vous plaît!"

"En anglais."

"Help me please!" Thomas repeated. "Where is Jon?"

"Jon is in the other room," a hurried voice replied. It sounded feminine.

Eddie flinched. Thomas had brought him to the wrong guest room! He cursed at himself for not being clearer with his instructions. Now was not the time to waste precious seconds.

Soon he was being wheeled to the other side of the second floor. Though their mouths were not far from his ears, Thomas's and Celestine's rapid dialogue devolved into a muffled cacophony. Alarm bells rang in his head. He had lost his vision; now he was losing his hearing. What sense would he lose next? Smell? Taste? Touch? He shivered at the thought of it. More voices mixed with the chaos as they neared the other guest room. Did Letizia see us?

The chair stopped once more. More voices, masculine ones, entered his ears. He felt pairs of hands supporting him as they got him to sit on a guest bed.

"Eddie, est-ce que—"

"Don't talk to him," José interrupted Thomas. "You'll just exhaust him."

They leaned his heavy head against a stack of pillows and propped his limbs into a relaxed position. Soon, a soothing sensation entered his body. Jon. Eddie breathed a sigh of relief as Jon's healing light engulfed him. His body lightened as he was healed.

After a while, Jon asked, "What happened?"

Eddie relaxed. His hearing was improving already. "I don't know. I just felt my chest tighten and got weak. I was literally losing my senses."

"What are you feeling now?"

"Tight chest, still weak, a bit dizzy, but better now," Eddie said. "I still can't see."

"His lips are white," José said. "We need to improve his blood flow."

"Este, Eddie, your clothes look tight," Jon said. "I think we have to take them off."

Dread filled Eddie's heart. "Don't tell me you're going to strip me naked."

"No. You can keep your underwear on."

Eddie sighed. "Everyone else, please look away. Et toi, Thomas."

He knew not whether they obeyed him; he assumed they did. A coarse pair of hands reached for the hem of his shirt and pulled it off his torso. His shoes were removed, as were his socks. His trousers were unbuttoned and unzipped before they slid off his legs. Eddie shuddered. He had never felt so vulnerable; he was accustomed to being covered from head to toe and shoulder to ankle. In his head, he prayed and pleaded that he would recover soon.

Warmth reentered his body. Slowly, his vision cleared. The first thing Eddie noticed was an outline of a teenage boy, hovering his hands over him. His eyeballs rolled to the right side. He could make out four people standing nearby, one of them holding up a phone. Only two of them had their backs turned. Eddie grimaced. Stop looking at me.

"Your lips are getting pinkish again," Jon said. "How are you now?"

"Better. I can see."

"Can you see clearly?"

"You're all shadows," Eddie told him. "I can see your outline but it's still blurry."

Jon breathed deep and exhaled. "Physically I think you're fine, but..."

"But what?"

"I think you're sick because of magic."

Eddie's heart rose to his mouth. "I'm cursed?"

"I don't know. I only know how to heal bruises, bones, that kind of stuff. This is different."

"We have to take him to Nitea," José said. "Eddie, get Louis to teleport us."

Eddie nodded. "Louis."

It appeared to him in the blink of an eye.

"Get some loose clothes. I'm not going to Nitea almost naked."

Poof. Fabric landed on his abdomen. From the texture of it, he could tell it was a piece of outerwear, but he did not know if it was the only item that was on top of him. And then he remembered—he had telekinetic sight. He activated it. Laying on top of him was a coat that he purchased during an autumn shopping spree.

Eddie forced himself to sit upright. His invisible limbs supported him as he lifted his arms and slipped them through long sleeves. The first things his fingers reached for were the buttons. He fastened them as fast as he could. Meanwhile, his telekinetic hands put on and laced his shoes.

"Can you see better?"

"It's still dark, but I can see. I'm using telekinetic sight."

"Okay. Just lay down; I'll carry you."

Fwssh. A force field materialized underneath him and bent into the shape of a lounge chair. Eddie leaned backward.

"Ask Louis to teleport all seven of us," José said.

So Letizia did catch us. "Louis, take the seven of us to Nitea."

Eddie nearly fell off the force field as they were whisked away to the portal. He clung to the edges of the shield. At the back of his mind, he hoped that whatever noise that was made did not reach the master bedroom.

***

They had arrived at a Nitean hospital. It turned out that while Jon was healing Eddie, José was calling Grimelda just in case he needed further treatment. She had met with them at the portal instead of waiting for them at the Gatekeeper base so that she could escort them to the hospital directly. After overhearing some dialogue, it was only then that he realized that he was not the only one being carried by a force field—Stella had enclosed Letizia in a soundproof shield. Grimelda walked by Eddie's side as the eight of them navigated the building.

"So you think he's cursed?" Grimelda asked, her voice faster than her swift strides.

"I don't know, maybe. All I know is that his body is physically fine," Jon answered.

"Good news is that he's not cursed; I don't sense any dark magic in him at all."

Eddie breathed a sigh of relief.

"It's still a mystery how you ended up like this, though," she added. "Don't worry. We'll find out soon. In the meantime, take this."

Grimelda handed him a small vial.

"It's a first aid antidote," she explained. "It may or may not cure you, but it should help."

Eddie lifted it to his lips and sipped its contents. It was bittersweet, like ordinary medicine. Its effects were immediate—his dizziness subsided, his body lightened, and some of his strength returned. However, the tightness in his chest lingered. His eyesight still remained unclear and rather colorless.

They entered an elevator and rode it to a lower floor. They took no turns as they paced towards the room. They soon stopped. Magic lifted him off the force field and onto a somewhat soft bed. A doctor sat at a desk across from him. In his hands, he held a paper-thin screen and a stylus.

The doctor asked him a question.

"What events led you to this state?" Grimelda translated.

"I was not able to sleep so I got up at midnight," Eddie began. "I changed clothes and teleported to a rooftop and did parkour—it's an activity where you run and jump over obstacles—for about ten minutes. Then I sat. And then I felt my chest getting tight. I stood up and walked, and then I felt my chest getting strangled and I was becoming very weak. I was dizzy. I couldn't see. I was losing my hearing."

The doctor queried him further.

"What are you feeling now?"

"Better. I'm not dizzy anymore and I feel lighter and stronger. My hearing is also very clear. However, my eyesight is still poor. You're all blurry and there's not much color. My chest is also still tight."

"Did you use any magic or medicine between now and when you first felt symptoms?"

"My friend used his healing powers. He says my body's fine physically now. I also drank a first aid antidote; it got rid of my dizziness and weakness."

"You mentioned you teleported. How?"

"I have a magical book that can teleport."

"Have you used any other magical object?"

"My golden necklace. It gives me powers."

Grimelda then spoke something to the doctor that struck awe in him. Probably told him that I'm a Realm Seeker. The doctor composed himself and probed Eddie further.

"Have you used any other magical object, or been subject to magic before?"

Eddie paused. "For the past year, I've been drinking anti-sleeping serums. Three times a week, shortly before midnight my time, and potent enough to last ninety minutes."

The doctor exclaimed. He then asked a short question.

"Anything else?"

"A few days ago, I was hit by flying rocks. I got knocked out and injured very badly, and I was healed using healing powers and healing magic at the same time. I'm not sure if that has an effect since my injuries were physical. That's it."

"These anti-sleeping serums, did you consume them in their pure form?"

"I did until about a week ago when I started drinking wake shakes instead."

"The person who accompanied you here told me you have lessons thrice a week; I assume that's why you're drinking serums. Prior to that, did you also have your sleep interrupted?"

"No. I think I might have developed insomnia after my lessons started; my body automatically wakes me up at around midnight, even when I have no lessons to attend. I would stay awake for about an hour and then fall back to sleep."

The doctor nodded his head. He faced Grimelda and said something to her.

"He'll do a quick checkup. Just sit still and relax."

Eddie sat upright as the doctor approached him. He examined Eddie's body using both medical equipment and magical methods. After a few minutes of thorough inspection, he scribbled on his tablet and spoke at length to Grimelda. She passed on his message to Eddie soon after he finished speaking.

"What you're experiencing now is a side effect of the anti-sleeping serum," she explained. "Since you're non-magical, the serum has a different effect on your body. Because you've been drinking it in its pure form regularly, it caused your insomnia—and almost your death—in the long term. If you only drank it once in a while, you would be fine.

"The doctor suggests reducing your usage to twice a week at most, preferably once a week if you can. Also, you should not consume it in its pure form, but as part of a beverage—like a wake shake. He also advises that you change your lesson hours so that you don't interrupt your sleep often.

"As for your cure, he'll prescribe a vial of first-class antidote. You only need to drink all of it at once, but you must sleep immediately after. Don't wake up until after at least five hours. After that, you should be completely fine."

"Oh, okay. Thank you very much."

Grimelda relayed his gratitude to the doctor, who only nodded and smiled in return.

"Can you walk now?" Jon asked.

"I think I can."

Eddie placed both hands on the bed and pushed himself to stand. He stepped forward. He was stable. "I can walk."

Grimelda uttered something to the doctor, presumably a word of thanks. She then opened the door and ushered them out of the room. They were led to a waiting area.

"Just sit here and wait," Grimelda told them. "I'll buy the antidote."

She left to make a purchase. Eddie sat down on one of the benches. Thomas took a seat next to him.

"Eddie."

"Ouais?"

"I knew it," Thomas said in French. "No wonder you're so good at everything; you're not human."

"I am human," Eddie asserted in his mother tongue.

"Then explain all of this?"

"I'm not magical; my necklace is," Eddie told him. "There's no point explaining because you'll forget all of this anyway."

"What makes you think I'll forget?"

"They'll erase your memories right after this. You're not supposed to know."

Thomas widened his eyes at him.

"Anyway," Eddie went on, "I'll tell you since you want to know."

He then gave Thomas a brief history of the Realm Seekers and the jewelry they owned. He then explained to him his duties as a Realm Seeker and the training that he was undergoing. With every detail he revealed, Thomas's jaw dropped lower and lower.

"So that's why you're hosting guests right now."

"Partly, yeah," Eddie confirmed.

Grimelda then returned, holding a plastic pouch in one hand. She handed it to Eddie. "Here's your antidote."

"Thank you."

"You're welcome."

He pocketed it.

"Now let's go to headquarters," she said. "We have some memories to erase."

***

The memory-erasure chamber—or MEC as it was often referred to—differed from what Eddie had in mind. He expected it to be a cramped room crowded with equipment. He pictured it to be dimly lit by a single lightbulb in the center of the ceiling. Instead, the MEC was expansive, with a domed ceiling that was as high as ten men standing on each other's shoulders. Instead of big and bulky machinery, a sleek panel lined the left side. The room did appear to be dark, but that was primarily due to its sable walls; a bright ring that outlined the ceiling illuminated the room.

The chair where the person would sit also deviated from his mental impression. He thought it to be large and have a heavy helmet attached to its head. He imagined it to have several straps for restraining the subject and a nest of cables sprouting from its back. Instead, the seat was slim and stark. The only objects that protruded from it were a few metal cuffs to secure the neck, forearms, and lower legs.

A row of stools rested near the door. Six of them took a seat while Letizia remained trapped in her force field. Grimelda glided towards the control panel. She turned around and asked, "Who'd like to go first?"

"I think Stella's mom should go ahead," José said.

"I agree," Celestine concurred.

"Okay. Stella, please help your mother into the seat."

Stella removed the force field with a wave of her forearm. At once, Letizia began screaming and flailing her arms in a frenzy. José and Celestine tried to calm her down, but she refused to be pacified.

Eddie clenched his fist in the air, stilling her. He steered her to the chair and forced her to sit. With a touch of a button, Grimelda fastened the metal cuffs.

"You can control people?" Thomas asked Eddie in French.

"In a way, using telekinesis."

"You can unzip her mouth, by the way," Grimelda informed. "I can handle her."

Eddie obliged. Letizia returned to shrieking as soon as she was allowed to. Grimelda flicked a finger. Her voice vanished.

"Don't worry, it will last only an hour."

She pressed some more buttons. The lights went out as the room transformed into a gigantic screen. Letizia's memories were projected onto the wall, while her thoughts were laid out on the ceiling. The first thing Eddie noticed was Stella's mortified face on the screen, shrinking into her shell as her mother scolded her. The image stirred pity and rage in his heart.

"So she got up in the middle of the night, caught Stella practicing, scolded her, and then she caught you," Grimelda said. She pursed her lips as she read Letizia's thoughts. "She noticed in the middle of the night, sometimes Stella would not be sleeping next to her. I see. I can wipe away that thought as well. Ah, she was also suspicious of you three. She started becoming wary when she couldn't find you in Bibliothèque Mazarine and were unable to be contacted."

Eddie stole a glance at José. He briefly looked away in guilt and awkwardness, knowing how he was to blame for extending their library visit to four hours.

"I don't know what I can do with that," she went on, "but I'll see."

She twisted knobs and pressed more buttons. The images that were shown on the wall were altered to form an edited chain of events. Now, instead of Letizia getting up in the middle of the night to catch and chastise her daughter, the memories changed so that she remained asleep. The notes on the ceilings changed as well. Feelings of trust and wishful thinking replaced all traces of wariness.

Grimelda retrieved a vial from her pocket. She approached Letizia and forced its contents down her throat. In a moment, Letizia slipped into slumber.

"A sleeping serum," Grimelda informed them. "Now I can alter her memories. They should disappear by the time she wakes up, which should be no less than six hours from now."

She returned to the panel and pressed another button. The chair gleamed a bright light and enveloped Letizia's body. After the light faded, the metal cuffs opened. Stella carried her mother off her chair and laid her on a force field.

"Thomas," Grimelda addressed him, "you next."

Thomas was taken aback. "How'd you know—"

"I know everything. It's my superpower."

Thomas hesitated.

"If you don't walk there yourself, your friend will make you do it," she warned. "Don't worry. It won't hurt."

He cast a nervous glance at Eddie. Eddie's eyes pointed towards the chair. Thomas took a deep breath and inched towards it. He sat down. This time, Grimelda did not lock him in place.

"Can you not show all my memories there, please?" Thomas requested, pointing at the wall.

"I can view them on my screen. Just lean back."

Thomas obeyed. Grimelda lowered her gaze to a screen on the panel. She fiddled with the controls.

"Yours are easier to alter," she remarked. "So instead of you hanging out on the rooftop with your friend, you'll remember going there alone and going back home after that. Nothing else. If it makes you more comfortable, I can leave them unchanged until you go to sleep tonight."

"Euh, yes please, sure."

Grimelda pushed some more buttons. This time, the light came from a compartment in the control panel instead of radiating from the chair. The compartment resembled an oven, and inside it was a small bottle. The light liquidized and filled the bottle. Grimelda then opened the compartment door, retrieved it, and handed it to Thomas.

"Drink this now."

He lifted it to his lips and gulped down its contents.

"You can wait here with José and Celestine," she informed. "Realm Seekers, I need to talk to you. Follow me."

Eddie, Jon, and Stella followed Grimelda to an empty room next door, trailing behind her by a couple of steps. She's probably going to scold me for getting caught. She turned on the lights and closed the door behind them. She looked at them, stony-faced.

"I'm sorry," Eddie said preemptively.

Grimelda furrowed her brows. "What?"

"I'm sorry I exposed our secret," he elaborated. "If I just slept or stayed at home none of this would have happened—"

"No, no, it's okay, that's not what I want to talk about," she said. "In fact, in this case, I'm relieved that you did so. You could have died in your sleep tonight.

"Anyway, I supposed Giorgino has told you three that a human girl is cursed and we have to brew a cure for her. We've gathered all our ingredients, partly thanks to you, and are a day away from finishing our first batch. There's just one problem: we discovered it's not actually a cure."

Eddie's world shattered around him. "What?"

"It leads to a cure but is not one itself. Somewhere in Nitea is an underground river named Medela, whose waters can cure anyone and anything. The problem is that it's been sealed off for centuries, and nobody who went there has made it out alive. The potion we're brewing is a liquid map that offers an alternative path to Medela from Earth. My apprentice is currently searching all the realms for a strong healing potion, and if he fails to find one, we may have to travel to Medela and gather its healing water."

The trio exchanged anxious glances. Stella asked, "So we might go to a place where nobody has made it out alive?"

"We definitely won't send you three there—at least, we hope we don't have to. We'll send our best masters first. I just want to keep you informed. Oh, and Eddie, I'll talk to Giorgino about what happened this morning so we can rearrange your lesson times." Grimelda covered her mouth and yawned. "Anyway, that's all I have to say. You all can return to Earth now."

The four of them left the room and returned to the MEC, where everyone else was waiting. Grimelda waved goodbye before the seven of them began their return journey.

As they ambled to the portal, Thomas asked Eddie, "What did she tell you?"

"Nothing. I'll have to explain it to you, and I don't have the energy for that right now."

A few minutes later, they crossed from Nitea to Earth. Eddie first dropped off Thomas at his apartment before teleporting everyone else to his home. Before he returned to his bedchamber, he accompanied his guests to their rooms and apologized for disturbing their night.

"You don't have to apologize," José said as he entered his room. "You were sick. It wasn't your fault."

"Your chair and clothes are still here by the way," Jon interjected.

"Oh, sorry about that. I'll get them—"

"No it's okay." José gathered Eddie's clothes, placed them on the rolling chair, and pushed it towards him. "Here. You can get Louis to teleport it for you."

"Thank you. Goodnight."

"Goodnight."

"Louis, to my room."

Flash. He was whisked away to his bedchamber, finding himself next to his bed instead of the guest room door. Eddie dove his hand into his pocket, retrieved the antidote, and placed it on his bedside table. He then shed his coat and shoes. He shivered as the frigid air blew onto his bare skin. I never knew my room was that cold. He scuttled to his closet and donned his sleepwear.

Louis fluttered to his side. "Better now?"

"Better, thanks for asking."

"No problem."

It flew to the bookshelf. As it nestled itself between novels, Eddie paced to his bed and tucked himself under the blanket. His arm reached for the vial. He opened it, drank the antidote, and hid the container in his nightstand's drawer. He curled into a sleeping position.

"Goodnight," he told Louis.

"Goodnight, and get well soon."

Eddie nodded his head in reply. He rested his head on a pillow and closed his eyes.

✧ ✧ ✧

Well, that was a scare. You know what's even scarier? Eddie's fainting scene was inspired by a personal experience of mine 😬

Thanks for checking out this chapter! If you found it intriguing, please vote by pressing the star-shaped button on this chapter! It would mean a lot to me 😃