Isaac Woodman
T2 2025 - Daedalus was difficult to get a read on. On the one hand, he was responsible for creating the maze which caused the deaths of many and on the other, he was strangely welcoming. After Jacob had calmed down, he had given the three of us a cup of tea which tasted sweet and held the aftertaste of some exotic flower that didn't overpower the taste. None of us spoke for a solid few minutes, compiling our thoughts on everything we had just been through. I could feel Jacob's gaze on me every now and then and I could feel the intent behind his gaze as easily as if he were speaking. I didn't blame him, he didn't understand. Leaving those two, again, felt awful. I felt as if I had spat on the good times I had with them, even if they weren't actually the people that I had gotten close to. In my mind, I knew that they would sacrifice themselves for the greater good, they had proven that on multiple occasions before, but something felt different. They were both the same person and at the same time, entirely different. They hadn't lived through this long enough yet to understand the horrors of what we face. If they, by some miracle, survive this, then maybe they will understand my reasoning. I hope they don't hold me accountable for leaving them there, with that, thing.
"Did you mean what you said?" Jacob stated, from his place on the floor. I looked up at him and he met my gaze with obvious hatred.
"About my power? Yeah, I mean what I said," I replied. "I, I keep stating that I will do anything if it means we succeed at the end of all this, and if it means giving Sebastian my ability, then so be it. If I do this, then our chances skyrocket." I sighed aloud, looking up at the ceiling. "Twenty years from now, Sebastian finally shows the world what he is capable of and after meeting him now, I realised something."
"What?"
"He seems to hold the same stubbornness that I do."
"Don't compare him to you, he at least isn't willing to sacrifice those counting on him."
"That's not what I was referring to. Think about it, since this began, my sole purpose was to gather knowledge. I travelled the world with comrades, many of whom died in the process, in order to come back to the past armed with the knowledge to combat the Theatres. And in those twenty years, not once did word of Sebastian's true ability come to light. So what does that tell you?" I looked pointedly at Jacob, who seemed lost in thought. I saw Daedalus and Hans listening in, from their places. "In the twenty years of this hell, Sebastian watched and didn't interfere. He waited, with you-" I pointed at Jacob, "by his side. You understand what I am implying, don't you?" I looked to the ceiling. "You see, at some point, Sebastian realizes that it is best to hide his strength from the world. To build up his strength in secret, only to show it at the very end. In that timeline, how many people do you expect died?"
"What are you getting at?" Jacob spat, indignation evident in his tone.
"Billions." I took another sip on the tea, which had grown cold, but it still tasted delicious. "I am the only one who holds this burden, what my friends and I discovered can be used against those who fabricated this situation. If at times my actions feel manipulative or malicious, then understand that I have less blood on my hands than you and Sebastian." Jacob stood, fury seeping from him like the heat of fire.
"You have no right saying that after what you have just done! After leaving the three of them back there to die!"
"Perhaps, but to me, those three lives mean precious little after what I have seen, what I have lived through. I'm not saying this lightly, but Sebastian was right to stay hidden. Was it the morally correct choice, no. Like me, he watched people die, just so that when the right moment arrived, then he could step up and save us all, but then he failed. All that time planning, hiding, gathering strength, was for naught when that thing arrived. When he showed his power, we came to a new answer to the question of how to win. And that answer presented itself as Sebastian. That's the real reason why I am here, Jacob. To train the failed saviour of humanity. If that means allowing the masses to die, then so be it, but I have already attempted to tell everyone of my knowledge, and I will continue to do so, but if people still enter these places, then their blood is on their own hands, not on mine."
"That just sounds lonely." I turned to Hans, who seemed much better now that we were safe.
"Ha, lonely," Jacob laughed to himself, but the laughter wasn't joyous, but was more condescending in nature. "You may try to use these words to convince yourself that you are not a monster Isaac, you may hide behind the knowledge and experience, but as long as you are willing to sacrifice those who are close to you, then you will never succeed in this. Even if you manage to survive this apocalypse as you so put it, what worth would it be if you are the only one alive at the end."
"That is dangerously naive Jacob," I muttered aloud.
"Perhaps, but naive isn't the right word Isaac, hopeful maybe or even optimistic."
"Once again, you don't seem to understand the full extent of the situation we are in. This is quite frankly hell. Being optimistic is being naive, if you sincerely believe that we can win without sacrificing anyone, then you are something worse than naive, you are delusional."
"Maybe, but you don't seem to even try looking for a way for everyone to survive. If you are content with letting one person die here and there, then what good does that do to their family and friends?" With that, Jacob turned to Daedalus asking him for somewhere to lie down in which Daedalus took him off into a corridor.
"For all its worth, he and you both speak the truth." Hans stated when the door to the hallway closed. "They say that you are right in preparing but also want to warn you not to lose your humanity in the process. Since, what is the worth of being alive at the end of the world if you have to sit on the corpses of those who died for you to live."
"They seem quite smart."
"They are, but like you, I believe that they also contain knowledge that would make them, unpopular."
"Burdensome, to be sure." I muttered to myself, but felt Hans nod in return.
"Don't get me wrong, I still don't one hundred percent trust in the way you operate, but unlike Jacob there, I know more than anyone the use of sacrificing one for many." He looked away from me and I thought it best not to ask him any further questions. Silence befell the room for an excruciatingly long amount of time, but that ended when Daedalus entered the room once again, carrying a metal teapot.
"Do you two want a refill ?" he asked and I proffered my cup.
"Thank you," I stated as he refilled it with a fresh batch of tea. "Sorry about intruding like this."
"No problem," he replied as he filled Hans's mug. "Now, let's not beat around the bush, as much as I like playing host, there is a reason why you are here isn't there?"
"I was asked to find you, she, they-" I corrected, "said that you have answers for us."
"Who asked you to find me?"
"I don't know, the easiest answer is to say god?" Hans looked at me with a look of incredulity as I said that and I shrugged acknowledging how it sounded. I wasn't religious in the slightest, forced to fight for survival made you forget about god and focus more on yourself.
"How intriguing." Daedalus scratched his chin, before gesturing to the monitor in front of us. "I can only answer a question from each of you, it looks like we don't have much time to talk." I followed his gaze, noticing the screen which now showed the following text. The Maze - END
"Why is this happening ?" I asked, recognising Daedalus's prompting to be quick.
"I don't know."
"What do you mean, you don't know?" Annoyance laced my words, but Daedalus seemed to understand.
"I'm not one of the beings that run these theatres, nor am I one of the watchers. I was given a job to design a maze and thus I did so." He took a lengthy sip on his tea, "I know you feel annoyed that the one question you want answered the most, I can't answer, but there must be another question that you want to ask."
"Why are you trapped here?" Hans asked as I was about to speak.
"I can answer that question quite easily. I'm not trapped, I could leave on my own accord, but that would only result in another taking my place and as much as I admit that the maze is a death trap, I am at least proud of its design. I wanted to see it to its conclusion, it's only a plus that I was given company before I vanish."
"Vanish?"
"They won't need me anymore, this play has reached its conclusion," he looked over at the screen once more.
"There must be a way to take you out with us," I stated, but Daedalus shook his head and his eyes reflected a feeling of acceptance.
"As much as I appreciate the thought, it's my time and I would like to see him again, apologise to him, it's the only thing I've been looking forward to."
"Daedalus, I now know what question I want to ask?" I rose to my feet, already noticing the room beginning to crumble into dust. "How do we win?"