Mel's right hand gripped Kapo's shoulder, and events would unfold according to his decision. Baybars took a deep breath, tilted his neck from side to side, and started laughing. He was laughing out loud, and he continued to laugh with the recklessness of someone who had thrown out the trouble he had been carrying for a while at the most inopportune moment.
"If I come back like this, they'll make me a normal Far Circle disciple again as soon as you're gone, and I'd rather die somewhere than have that happen. Let's go to that Energy Crystal Mine for the last time; let's see what weirdness you're going to do this time!"
With Baybars' election, they stayed where they were for a while, which was necessary for the students of Ward Twentieth to set off on their way back. When everyone left, they passed silently by the one-story house where the two Academy Staff were staying and entered the mine again.
