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Tom's POV:

"Well, firstly, I should explain some things to you," Eris began, tapping her fingers on the table. We had just ordered our food, and she was finally to begin telling us the rules of Galena. What had she and Mot been talking about that took so long?

"Why don't you explain the meanings of the names first?" Malachai suggested. He was slumped over in his chair, looking bored and tired. I felt the same way, to be honest.

Eris brightened. "Yeah, that's a good idea. Okay, well, to begin with, the original leaders decided they wanted to name the town based on the names of crystals. They were, as others liked to call them, very 'superstitious'. They believed that certain crystals would have certain healing powers. They figured that they would name their city and gods after the healing crystals that represented them."

I rolled my eyes. "Healing crystals? This sounds dumb."

Sparklez shrugged. "I don't know. Every time we say that something sounds like a myth that was made up by some random person, it turns out to be true. I'd give this healing crystal thing a try. Besides," he said, turning to Eris, "it sounds pretty cool."

She flashed a smile at him, then cleared her throat. "Okay. Well, when they were naming Anatase, they called it that because it means 'to rid confusion, and to solve problems and conflicts'. There was one part that they forgot while naming it, though. It means, if you want to be exact, that it would 'solve problems from multiple angles'. They tried to be controlling and solve it from only one angle, which is why it split into three sections to begin with."

Sparklez slammed his hands on the table, making a few people jump. "See, Tom! The meaning of the crystal had an impact on Anatase!"

"That was a coincidence," Jeriah muttered, rolling his eyes. "Anatase was destined for destruction with a plan like that."

I smiled proudly at him. "See, someone's with me on this one!"

Ignoring us, Eris continued. "Galena has a much better name, which is why it's so successful. The name means to release anything that isn't wanted. We release any people who are causing us trouble or destroying our perfect system, making it a better place. It also represents the journey to 'becoming pure gold'." She looked immensely proud of herself and her city. "By living here, and following Galena's rules, our hearts are turning into pure gold! We're becoming better and better people. It's wonderful."

It took three waiters to bring all twenty-one of us our food. Some of us sat up, our eyes shining, as our meals were placed in front of us. Some, including Mot, just stared at their plates with blank faces. I guess this was a lot to take in, but I was slightly excited. All we would need to do is rescue Gaines and the three gods, and we would be fine.

Sure, that's easier said than done, but we could manage.

"And, lastly," Eris said after taking a bite of her food, "Dioptase, the crystal, is supposed to be an anti-depressant. I've never met the god, but he's supposed to give you a feeling that lifts spirits, and warms the heart. He's mainly associated with love."

I slowly turned my head to glance at my alternate. He had been slouched over in his seat with his eyes glazed over, but he was now fully alert. His one good eye was enormous, and there was a look of deep pain behind it. The hand holding his fork was trembling, and he eventually placed it back down without taking a bite. I felt incredibly sorry for him, as did most of the people at the table, judging by their expressions.

The rest of the meal was spent going over the actual rules. I wasn't listening during most of them, since it seemed to be the same, boring stuff. No destroying other people's property, no stealing other people's items, and no harming other people, physically or emotionally. Fighting was supposed to be a last resort, as, Eris told us, there were plenty of other ways to handle conflicts. I mean, sure, you could just talk it out, but it's so much quicker and more fun to solve a problem by killing the other person. Or having a small trial. Those were entertaining.

The only rules I listened to were the ones that actually scared me. Not because I was intimidated by their punishments or anything, but because of the look on Eris's face while she told us. She stared off into the distance, a smile across her face, looking like she was high (which I don't think she was, but you never know. We had a drug van back in Ruxomar, after all).

But, anyway, it was frightening. Eris couldn't bear to say anything bad about Galena, or Dioptase. It was a perfect god, and a perfect city, where nothing could go wrong. We were never to defy the words of a leader, since they were much better people than we would ever be, and that we should bow down to them without question. She said that any follower of Molybdenite or Iolite was a traitor and, basically, a freak. I couldn't wait for her speech to be over.

"Well, I guess this is goodbye," Malachai said, folding his arms and nodding at all of us. "I'll go back to the visitation center. Eris, why don't you show them to the new apartment building? There are plenty of rooms for each person."

She nodded. "Why don't you guys split up, so you know if you're going to be staying in the same room as anyone? I believe there are some couples in this group. Oh, and if a parent wants to stay with their child, they can feel free to do that," Eris added, glancing at Alyssa.

Alyssa's POV:

"Are you going to be staying by yourself?" I asked Andor, suddenly feeling bad for him.

He looked surprised. "Alyssa, I've been alone for most of my life. I'm fine. My father didn't even sleep in the same part of the castle as me when I was younger."

My cheeks reddening, I stared at my feet. "Yeah... sorry. I guess I'm just used to... I don't know."

Andor laughed. "Yeah, I understand. I'll talk to you tomorrow, I guess, if we're splitting up here." He was quite a bit taller than me, so he was able to see through most of the crowd. "It looks like they're dividing up the rooms. I guess you better go find Mot."

I didn't want to leave his side, but it seemed like I had to. "Yeah, I'll see you tomorrow." Avoiding his gaze so he wouldn't see the disappointment in my eyes, I pushed through the crowd to find my father. It wasn't difficult, as his bright green face and colorful flower crown stood out, even in such a large group of people.

"Hey, Dad. Are we going up to our room now?" I asked as I approached him. My already low spirits sank even further when I saw the look of utter devastation on his face.

"What? Oh... yeah, I guess we are," Mot mumbled without looking at me. When we made our way to the front desk, he quickly grabbed his key and hurriedly made his way out of the main room. There was an elevator, but it was already crowded with the rest of our group trying to go to their floor. Brushing past them, he took the stairs.

I was out of breath by the time we made it to our floor, but Mot didn't seem to be bothered by it. He was now walking, if anything, faster than before. He shoved the key into the lock, and thrust the door open with a heavy amount of force.

"Dad? Are you okay?" I asked him, which was kind of a stupid question. Without answering me or bothering to take a look at the place we were staying in, he sped into the living room and immediately sank into the couch.

"I... I..." he stuttered, his voice trembling.

I stood completely still, not knowing what to do. "Is... is there anything I can do?" His face hardened, and I flinched slightly. "I... I can leave you alone, if you..."

Suddenly, Mot let out a sob, and tears began to flow from his eyes. Maybe I should've said something soothing to him, or hugged him, or anything. But I didn't. I stood there, in complete shock, not doing anything. His body shook violently with each sob, and he buried his face in his hands.

"IT'S NOT FAIR!" he yelled, making me jump. "It's not... goddamn... fair..."

I finally snapped out of my stunned trance, and dashed over to him. "Dad, I'm sorry. I know, it's terrible. They're all terrible people, and they're brainwashed, and there's something terribly wrong with the leaders of Galena. I know."

"I'm sorry," Mot said in a low voice, looking up at me with shame written across his face. "It isn't fair to you to make you deal with me. I'm a mess, I apologize. I just... I feel so alone now. They're erasing Dianite's memory, and he's not going to remember anything about me. He's what's been keeping me alive all of these years. Now I have nobody."

Tears rose into my eyes as I leaned into him. "Well, you still have me, I guess. I've always been here."

Mot let out a long sigh, and removed the flower crown from his head. He held it gingerly, turning it over in his hands to get a full look at it. "Yeah," he answered eventually, his voice breaking. "We'll always be together."