Max joined me for lunch as usual. We only have so long, and I had so much to talk to her about I had to set guidelines. Firstly I asked what she had wanted to talk about last week. And yea, she had come across the events in Salt Lake City. We confirmed notes, she was amazed I'd known about it at all, which led to a discussion about my dinners with Hal. She still insists on calling them dates. She had a little bit more information, but most of that was what had come to light in the week since. As for Hal, of course I couldn't tell her anything, and now she thinks that something scandalous is going on. At least she's happy for me.
The next item on our agenda was our Halloween costume. I had forgot to bring it up to Candace when we were there, but I figure it'd be better for Max and her to meet first anyway. Still, I made my suggestion to Max and she thought it was a great idea. She also thinks that her and Candace should be introduced first before we made any plans. I told her that I go over to Candace's on Thursdays when she normally has class, but we're usually there through dinner if she'd want to join. Max liked that idea and I said I'd make the appropriate arrangements. Will have to remember to text Sam and have him relay the request. Need to get Candace a phone, maybe another shopping trip is in order.
That left only a few minutes to confirm our plans for the Roller Derby Tournament. Everything is in order, tickets are confirmed, and with it being on a Saturday Max doesn't have to worry about school. I only have to worry about work, and I've already confirmed that off. So we're all good!
So, dinner with Hal. He tried to start with the small talk like usual as he decided how willing he was to talk to me. I was having none of it, I immediately asked how much danger I was in. Hal nodded and said he actually explored that area. While he had originally been approached by two men, since accepting his apprenticeship he'd only had contact with his tutor. His tutor told him that generally people don't believe what it was Hal would tell them. Or if they did, they tended to already believe wild and crazy notions and it was rare that what Hal had to say would be considered dangerous.
Their organization gave people like him something of a support group for what they had found, and a purpose in finding it. Their work was primarily in preventing people from discovering and damaging the Ohvao. To that end they also worked to prevent people from accidentally crossing the Ohvau. This gave their organization a noble purpose and kept people loyal to it.
If someone were to try and break that loyalty, steps would have to be taken to correct and prevent it from happening again. He said the old man was very persuasive in that department. He had also stressed again that life was what was valuable to them, they never resorted to threats or violence. But they might imprison someone until their loyalty could be established.
"So I'm in danger of being kidnapped?" I asked. Hal said no, not for him just talking to me. They would be more concerned if he were to show me some hard proof. Then they would treat me just as they had him, inviting me to join them to protect those secrets. But they would also have to correct him and reestablish his loyalty.
What about the news articles he had shown me, and what Max had found? Hal said things like that showed up in the news from time to time. They were usually wrote off by the public at large. The rare items that hit the news on a regular basis were treated by the public as conspiracy theories. The amusing thing to Hal was that it turns out there is an organization that is covering them up, and he was now a part of it.
Loch Ness, The Bermuda Triangle, and other such conspiracies turn out to actually be true. Just not in the way people think they are. There are places in the world where people can, and sometimes do, accidentally cross the Ohvau. But the Ohvau was meant to prevent magical creatures from crossing, not mortals. So mortals can cross it, just like he had, and even come back. Sadly, they didn't always. I asked, what if a Fomor were to cross it? He said that part of the magic was to prevent that from happening, but if one were to find a loophole it could tear down the whole thing. That was part of the reason they worked so hard to keep it secret. They didn't want mortals crossing the Ohvau intentionally. It might allow for something on the other side to find a loophole.
So I asked him about breaking the runestone. Hal said they assured him that the runestone was just a marker, that it had no actual connection to the Ohvau. Hal didn't seem like he believed that though, so I pressed. He said it was hard for him to get over that feeling he had when he broke it, the wind coming in toward it, and then blowing out. It was like something was taking a breath for the first time in a very long time. And while his tutor seemed unconcerned about the runestone having been cracked, the old man had been intent on it.
I asked him what he was going to do, and he said that in addition to him being a part of the organization, they actually treat him like an employee. They'll train him to be able to do the things he needs to do, fund his education for the things he wants to do, and they pay him a wage. He said he's getting paid better now than he had ever expected to get paid as an Anthropologist. And all he has to do really is to keep his secret, and help the organization when they find something that would reveal the secret to the world.
Writing that out, I realize he didn't answer my question. It makes me wonder if he's sure about what he's going to do now. Science is a discipline that relies on being open, you don't keep secrets and you don't hide things. This seems to me to be a conflict of his interests. It's no wonder he'd be unsure of how to answer my question.
But what would I do if I were in his position? I think I'd learn everything I could, be able to confirm that what they're saying is true. And if it's a secret that is worthy of being kept, then I guess I keep it. But if not, I'd spill the beans as spectacularly as I could.
I wonder if that's what Hal is going to do? Makes me feel like I have a responsibility to be his anchor.
