"And is this your card?"
The magician revealed the ace of heart.
Leo's eyes widened in shock
"Y-Yes," he replied, "You hid your ability usage so well!"
"My ability?" The magician looked back with squinted eyes. "No, no, no there was no ability used at all there, just magic."
Leo was confused again, "Isn't your ability magic?"
"Well, yes it is but – ah whatever."
Feeling he had completed his goal, the magician got up, his head heavy on his shoulders from the violent waves just a few minutes ago. Thankfully he had almost a full hour to recover this time, so he knew he had some time for rest. Nothing a quick nap couldn't fix.
As he was walking away, he heard a familiar voice.
"You, what's your name?"
It was Arlo, the great soldier who came to help them through the desert.
After a bit of thought the magician carefully replied, being as respectful as he could.
"Is there a specific reason you want to know sir?"
The magician had been carefully observing the soldier since the beginning and other than basic instructions and an occasional encouraging comment, he had remained stoic and unapproachable. It was rather weird he was getting approached now, perhaps his cool tricks he'd spent his life mastering were being appreciated by someone of note?
He considered a world he was Arlo's personal magician and thought about the abundant pay that could bring. What a life! The food he'd be able to eat!
Arlo was taken aback by the refusal to answer such a simple question but decided not to think too much of it.
"You impressed me in that last wave, out of the people here, given you have a decent affinity, you actually have a chance of making it up the ranks."
He paused for a second.
"Also usually when people activate their ability, they release a certain aura, and I didn't sense it from you earlier during the wave, nor while you did your little trick, so it must be fairly impressive."
Snapping out of his daydream, Evel quickly replied.
"My name is Evel, Sir."
Evel spoke very cautiously so as not to offend the general. He had learned his lesson on 'poking the bear' in the past and understood that Arlo could snap him out of existence with a glance if he really wanted to. Thankfully it seemed that Arlo had quite the relaxed demeanor, so he promptly added:
"And also, I didn't use my ability."
Now Arlo was confused. He hadn't been watching the trick very closely but saw enough of it to determine there was no way the two of hearts had traveled to the top of the deck. His interest growing, Arlo asked,
"Show me the trick."
Evel had an idea.
But it could be risky…
Ahh screw it.
Deciding to take the risk, Evel replied.
"No."
"No?" Arlo repeated slowly, "That's awfully brave of you."
"Unless of course you were willing to answer a question of mine afterwards…?"
Arlo raised an eyebrow at the scrawny magician. He couldn't have been more than 55 kilograms at his height of around 175 centimeters, and considering the lack of nutrition he had provided these greens, Evel couldn't have been fairing well.
Not to mention the wave that just passed by. Where was this boy getting the mental fortitude to help a peer and now try to negotiate?
Impressed, Arlo nodded. He liked people with spunk. He led Evel to a side of the disk with the least people and created a simple construct to isolate the two of them. Naturally, such a simple trick didn't hamper Arlo's capability of maintaining and observing the disk.
"Very well, as long as it's a question I am allowed to answer, I shall."
Evel, excited that his little scheme worked, recreated the same trick again. His body weighed down with exhaustion but the trick was like second nature to him so he spent this time thinking of the best question he could ask. Nearing the end of the trick, he revealed the 7 of spades.
"And this right here, is your card. The trick is – "
"I see, so when I placed my card on top of the deck, you held two of them, and the card you were shuffling around was just a decoy."
"A small sleight of hand," Evel replied, in awe at how quickly his trick was revealed. "I'm amazed you were able to notice it on your first try."
Arlo nodded, "If you continue down the Path, simple observation like this will become rudimentary. Very well, ask your question."
This was it!
Any chance Evel could get at improving his odds of thriving, he would take, and this question could be vital.
Should he ask about the desert?
No, this would be a waste of a question, they were almost out of it anyways.
What about how powers really worked and the fundamentals he might need to know to improve himself?
No, that would probably be taught to him soon regardless.
He was almost tempted to ask more about Arlo, but decided it was ultimately a waste.
Evel knew there were other ways to leave the desert, albeit slower, they were much easier, which led him to have a sneaking suspicion this desert was some sort of challenge the group needed to pass, a simple test.
But even that was just a guess.
After a few seconds of contemplating he finally asked:
"What's the next challenge the army will impose on this group?"
This was the question Evel decided he could get the most information about. If there was no 'next challenge,' then he could relax with no regrets. Otherwise, he could get a lot of life saving information, but more likely than not…
The corner of Arlo's lip slowly rose as he realized what Evel was trying to do.
"Can't tell you, ask another question."
Yes!
This was what Evel was looking for!
By wording his question in such a way, Evel was able to get information without wasting his question. Had he asked if there was another challenge, Arlo likely would have answered 'Yes' or 'No'.
But based on this response, Evel could confidently say another challenge awaited. For this trick to work, he was taking a gamble on Arlo's personality, allowing him to ask a second question at all, and it had paid off!
Lacking the brainpower to fully analyze the answer, Evel directly asked the next question:
"When are superiors allowed to intervene?"
Arlo pursed his lips in amusement.
Clever.
"Can't tell you, you're going to have to ask another question." Arlo nodded his head in approval, "I'm quite impressed by what you came up with in your state. Still, this next question will be your last regardless of my answer."
Evel was satisfied. Had Arlo answered his question, it would have been extremely helpful of course, knowing the specific conditions for an intervention, but even the lack of answer was helpful!
The lack of response implied that they can at some point intervene but the specific conditions were unknown to Evel. It also helped confirm his suspicion this was some sort of test. Nonetheless, this was free information!
Evel's head was panging as the accumulated exhaustion was tearing into his brain but he wouldn't get such a precious opportunity again, so he held strong to ask his final question:
"What specifically can I do to best improve my odds of survival for the future?"
"Before I answer that question, " Arlo began, "If you're comfortable, tell me about your ability, of course you may keep it a secret as many wish to, but my advice may change if I know what you can do."
Generally, it was taboo to ask others about their abilities first. Usually they'd tell you themself if they wanted you to know.
Evel hesitated.
Could he trust Arlo? So far Arlo had been honorable to deal with but ultimately he didn't know much about him.
I doubt he'd even care about my secrets…
Logically his brain was telling him to reveal his ability. He could get the best information that way, but ultimately, he decided not to. Maybe it was exhaustion, or some lingering paranoia from being on the run for so long.
"I don't wish to reveal my power, but…" Evel thought for a moment, "I can say that it isn't much use in a direct fight."
"Understandable." Arlo replied unperturbed by the lack of trust, "Many abilities are restricted heavily once their abilities are publicized."
After thinking for a while Arlo answered the question:
"Although you say your ability is poor in battle, I wouldn't be too sure. You surely haven't tested it to the limit and I'm sure there are many applications if you get creative enough."
"Speaking generally, the main thing you should focus on is getting as familiar with your ability as possible."
"However, it's crucial not to neglect your physical body. I've seen many fail because they relied too heavily on their abilities. When we get out of this desert, focus on building up your skinny frame and train as much as you can with a weapon for the following week, especially if you end up having a weak affinity." "Based on your weak body and high skills with your hands, I'd recommend something like throwing knives or darts or something but use whatever you want."
"And," Arlo emphasised, "it may do you well to find a few strong friends here and there."
Arlo himself was surprised how talkative he had become, but seeing the intensity at which the hungry magician was listening to him, he felt he needed to give a proper answer.
Evel nodded and lightly bowed.
With the remainder of his strength, he let out a few words of gratitude before Arlo dismissed the isolating environment.
Evel walked directly back to Leo and gave him a brief instruction.
"Wake me up in 15 minutes."
Then Evel collapsed to the ground.