Remi furrowed her brows in surprise.

The tendrils still came out of her Grandpa Bericc's fingertips and held them in place, stronger than ever.

Power radiated from him like heat from a furnace. There was an air of confidence, clarity, and finality surrounding him.

"Grandpa?" Remi blurted in confusion, unsure as to what was going on. Nothing made sense.

Why was her grandpa here, of all places, at a time like this?

From what she had been told, Grandpa Bericc was living on some private island with every luxurity at his fingertips, content with life.

He'd visit them all every couple years as Remi grew up, always bringing new gifts and surprises. He'd spend nearly all his time with Remi and her siblings and cousins, teaching them new things, and telling them fantastical stories that they couldn't help but listen to, enraptured by the intrigue and magical rise and fall of his words. Always making jokes at his own expense, Grandpa Bericc was the first to point out how he always had more wrinkles and less hair each time he saw them.

Never once had she seen her grandpa without a smile on his face, small wrinkles crinkling the corners of his kind, ocean-clear, blue eyes.

He was always the peace within the storm, the fun in a world of boring and hard work, with a whirlwind of adventure swirling in his wake. Each invitation he gave them to come visit him was denied by either Uncle Fahrem or Remi's dad, much to the children's dismay.

And now, her grandpa was giving her another one of his famous smiles, the kind he used to give her as a kid, his white teeth bright and gleaming. "My beautiful granddaughter," he said softly, almost quietly. "You've grown up since I last saw you."

Remi wasn't quite sure what to say or do. She felt like running up to her grandpa and throwing herself in his arms, and letting him assure her that everything was going to be alright and go right back to normal. That this whole mess of a situation was just a hiccup in the road, and that nothing was permanent.

But alas, she knew that something was amiss if he had come all the way here, and at such a critical time. Of all the days he could have came for a visit, he chose today? It seemed suspicious, as much as Remi didn't want to admit it.

And on top of that, her grandpa could transform himself into a giant. He'd always used the projection of his energy for parlour tricks when she was a kid. She never knew just how powerful this seemingly frail, elderly man was. He'd kept that hidden from her this entire time.

Surely her grandpa had an explanation, though. He had to. He always did.

Killure took a hurried step forwards, as if to start for her grandpa. Remi quickly grabbed his wrist, squeezing tightly.

His smouldering eyes met hers, full of rage and fury, speaking of the carnage that would be wrought once his tornado of emotions were released from his body onto his target.

"Not now," she said firmly, not believing for a second that he was going to listen to her. She thought for sure that her words would go in one of his ears and out the other a second later.

And yet, he stopped. He still shook in anger, and seemed ready to pounce at any second, but he didn't move. He was listening to her.

Remi would have marvelled, if she'd had the time.

"Grandpa," she breathed out, the confusion evident in her voice. "What's going on? Tell me."

His smile drooped a little, becoming lopsided and misshapen. "Ah yes, little dove, you deserve to know. Perhaps we could go into the city and find a small diner to sit inside and discuss matters?"

She wanted to deny him, to demand that he explain everything right now without delay, but she didn't. Instead, Remi only nodded stiffly. "Lead the way."

------

A large, thick-rimmed mug was slammed onto the table in front of Grandpa Bericc, beer sloshing out the sides. Lemonade, in a tall, thin glass slid smoothly across the table to Remi. The server disappeared with the rest of his tray of drinks to deliver them to other waiting tables.

Lively music played all around, and all over there were drunk folk dancing and shaking and making fools out of themselves, despite it only being midday.

The incessant chatter and noise grated on Remi's ears, and the smell of sweat and dirt permeated her nostrils. Her skin crawled at being this near to so many people. The room felt too small, too hot, like it was closing in. Remi took a deep breath to calm herself. She was okay. She was fine. No one other than her grandpa was even paying her any attention. It was just the two of them.

Another deep breath. In, and out.

The noise provided a disguise for the conversation they were about to have.

Her grandpa lifted his mug to his lips and began guzzling his beer down. When he finally slammed the mug back onto the table, it was nearly half empty. He let out a loud exhale, and wiped his lips with the back of his hand. "What did we come here for again?" he paused for a second. Remi was about to reply when he answered his own question. "Oh, right. I was gonna explain some stuff. Where to start, where to start . . ."

"How about with all the stuff I don't know?" Remi suggested with a slight frown.

"That's a lot to cover," Grandpa Bericc laughed heartily, patting his belly.

He wasn't taking her seriously.

She wasn't a kid anymore, and didn't want to be treated as one.

"Grandpa," Remi stated firmly. "My own uncle just tried to kill me. He's already murdered poor Faye and Caede as well as others, I'm guessing. No idea where Blue and Bliss are—he probably got to them too. My entire life is falling to pieces around me, nearly everyone I've loved is dead or gone, and all you're going to do is treat me like I'm too young and naive to understand what you're trying to say?"

Upon saying the names of her fallen relatives, Remi's voice choked, and her chest clenched tightly. Their loss was too fresh, too new, leaving behind gaping holes of emptiness in her. Her throat felt raw.

Her grandpa's eyes widened in surprise for a moment. Clearly, he hadn't expected that from her. The severity of the situation seemed to slap him in the face.

His eyes softened, and he pursed his lips for a moment, as if thinking carefully about his reply. Finally, he shook his head. "No, you're right. You have a right to know, especially after all you've been through today. Sorry. It's my fault, I got there too late."

"You got there too late," Remi repeated, echoing his words. "That means you expected something like this to happen, grandpa. How could you have known?"

Grandpa Bericc started in surprise, realizing what he'd unintentionally revealed. He let out a long sigh. "I have to start at the very beginning. What do you know about the islands we live on, granddaughter?"

Remi furrowed her brows. What did that have to do with anything? She decided to be patient and humour him, although it was difficult. "Um . . . I know that there are six islands. Merricrest, Brightbay, Vertice, Blueway, Mallowley, and Belley. Not too far apart. And beyond that, a sea full of monstrous creatures."

He nodded once. "Yes. And how did this cluster of islands come to be, do you know?"

Remi took a small sip of her lemonade. A chunk of ice fell into her mouth, and she gnawed on it for a second before it broke apart into tiny pieces for her to melt and swallow. "I . . . don't really know. No one talks about the past, only the present. I heard a rumor that all the islands used to be one large continent, but broke apart and became the islands we see today."

"That's . . . a partial truth. Other than that, what else do you know about the past?"

Remi thought hard for a few long moments.

Then she remembered: The cave. The crude depictions that covered the walls.

"There's . . . this cave. It had drawings all over it. Strange drawings and . . . there were lines and dashes that looked like they could be letters and words of some sort, but I couldn't understand them. They aren't letters or words that we use."

Her grandpa's eyes lightened. "Our ancient language, the language of our ancestors. Caezese."

Remi stared at him in surprise. She leaned forwards, unable to help herself. "You can speak it?"

He nodded. "And write. I learned from my father, your great grandfather. The language is long lost now, though. Buried beneath layers upon layers of filth."

"But why is there a need for a second language, when there are only six islands, and we all speak and write in the same language, and understand each other perfectly?" Remi queried. She didn't understand. Also, if this old language--Caezese--was real, and worked just fine, why had people created an entirely new language throughout the years?

Grandpa Bericc glanced at a couple jumping and hooting, their arms linked together at the elbows as they danced. Remi followed his gaze. Their free hands held beer mugs, though by this point, nearly all of the beer had sloshed out. They didn't seem to care, or even notice.

"If I try to explain that now, you won't understand," he finally replied. "What else did you see in the cave?"

———

A/N: Here's part one to the big revealing!! Everything is starting to be explained now.