Chapter 38: What We Carry
The forest had changed again.
Not in a way you could see—
But in the way it felt.
The deeper they moved from Hollowfen, the less familiar everything became. The air grew thinner somehow, quieter in places where it shouldn't have been, like the world was holding its breath.
They had been moving for what felt like forever.
But in reality—
It had only been a day and a half.
Kin finally broke.
"Alright, that's it."
He slowed to a stop, stretching his arms overhead before dropping them dramatically at his sides.
"I'm calling it," he said, shaking his head. "I'm only human. I need food. I need rest. I need—something that isn't running for my life."
Mira didn't even look at him.
"You chose to come."
Kin glanced at her, already grinning.
"Yeah, and I'm still making great decisions."
Darius stopped ahead of them, turning just slightly.
His eyes scanned the area once.
Twice.
"…Fine," he said.
That alone surprised them.
"We rest for a few hours."
A pause.
"We're still half a day out."
Kin dropped immediately to the ground.
"Best decision you've made all day," he muttered, already digging into his bag.
He pulled out food like he hadn't eaten in weeks.
Mira sat beside him without asking.
Watching.
"…You're disgusting."
Kin looked up mid-bite.
"I'm efficient."
"You're chewing like something's going to take it from you."
He swallowed, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand.
"Out here? Something probably will."
She rolled her eyes.
"Give me one."
Kin blinked.
Then smirked.
"Oh, now you want some?"
Mira held out her hand, unimpressed.
"Before I change my mind."
He tossed her something.
She caught it easily.
"…Don't say I never take care of you," he added.
She glanced at him.
Then shook her head slightly.
"You talk too much."
Kin leaned back on his hands.
"Yeah… but you're still sitting next to me."
That got a reaction.
Small.
Subtle.
But it was there.
Mira looked away.
"…Don't read into it."
Kin smiled anyway.
"Too late."
A short distance away—
Darius stood with Lirael.
His arms were crossed, his attention fully on her.
"…Tell me about the city," he said.
Lirael didn't look at him right away.
Her gaze remained fixed ahead.
"Serrealla is not like the places you're used to."
Darius didn't respond.
He was listening.
"They don't rely on instinct," she continued.
"They train. They prepare. They study us."
"Us," Darius repeated.
Lirael glanced at him.
"…Everything that isn't them."
A pause.
"They won't hesitate," she added.
"They won't question."
Darius nodded slightly.
"…Then we don't give them time to."
Lirael's gaze lingered on him for a moment.
"You're confident."
"I'm prepared."
That answer sat differently.
After a moment—
Darius turned.
"I'll move ahead," he said.
Lirael frowned slightly.
"…Alone?"
"Yes."
No hesitation.
"I'll clear the path."
Before anyone could argue—
He was gone.
Just like that.
The forest swallowed him instantly.
For a while—
No one spoke.
The quiet wasn't uncomfortable.
Just… still.
Until—
Kin sat up slightly.
"…So if we die out here, who gets my stuff?"
Gus didn't even look at him.
"No one."
Kin frowned.
"That's messed up."
Mira sighed.
"You don't have anything worth taking."
"…Wow."
Kin looked around.
"I see how it is."
A small, quiet laugh slipped from Rito.
And just like that—
The tension eased.
Blue sat a little further off.
Watching.
Thinking.
Rito walked over slowly, sitting beside him without a word.
For a moment—
Neither of them spoke.
Then—
"…You're doing it again."
Blue glanced at her.
"…What?"
"Thinking too much."
He let out a small breath.
"…Can you blame me?"
Rito shook her head.
"No."
A pause.
"…But you don't have to do it alone."
Blue looked ahead.
"…It doesn't feel like that sometimes."
Rito studied him.
"Why?"
He hesitated.
"…Because if I mess this up…"
A pause.
"…it's not just me that pays for it."
Rito didn't respond right away.
Then—
"…That was always true."
Blue looked at her.
"You think that makes it easier?"
She shook her head slightly.
"No."
A small pause.
"…But it means you were never carrying it by yourself."
Blue's expression shifted.
"…You trust me that much?"
Rito smiled faintly.
"I trust us."
That hit differently.
"…Even now?" he asked.
She nodded.
"Especially now."
A quiet moment passed.
"…I don't know what's waiting for us in the Veil," Blue admitted.
Rito looked ahead.
"…I don't either."
A pause.
"But I know one thing."
Blue glanced at her.
"…What?"
She met his eyes.
"We're not walking into it the same people who started this."
That was true.
And they both knew it.
Nearby—
Gus sat alone.
Or at least—
He had been.
Lirael approached quietly.
Sitting across from him.
He didn't look surprised.
"…You don't like this place," he said.
Lirael tilted her head slightly.
"…No."
Gus nodded.
"Yeah. I figured."
A pause.
"…You don't like me either."
She didn't answer immediately.
"…I don't understand you."
Gus smirked faintly.
"Join the club."
That almost got a reaction.
Almost.
"…Your power," she said slowly.
"…it doesn't belong."
Gus looked at his hands.
"…Yeah."
A quiet pause.
"…Neither do I."
That made her pause.
"…You believe that?"
Gus shrugged.
"Doesn't really matter what I believe."
He glanced at her.
"…It's what people see."
Lirael studied him.
Longer this time.
"…You're wrong."
Gus blinked.
"…Am I?"
She nodded slightly.
"…You're not the only one who doesn't belong."
That shifted something.
"…You?" Gus asked.
A small pause.
"I had a place," she said.
Her voice was quieter now.
"A life."
Gus didn't interrupt.
"They called it balance," she continued.
"…but it wasn't."
Her gaze lowered slightly.
"It was control."
Gus leaned forward slightly.
"…So you left?"
She shook her head.
"No."
A pause.
"…I was removed."
Silence.
"…For what?" Gus asked.
Lirael met his gaze.
"…For refusing to agree."
That was it.
No long explanation.
No justification.
Just truth.
Gus leaned back slightly.
"…Sounds familiar."
She frowned faintly.
"…Does it?"
He nodded.
"…Yeah."
Another quiet moment passed.
"…You shouldn't trust me," Lirael said suddenly.
Gus looked at her.
"…Why?"
"…Because I don't trust myself."
That hung in the air.
Gus didn't smile this time.
"…Good."
She blinked.
"…Good?"
He nodded.
"Means you're thinking."
That confused her more than anything.
A sudden shift in the air—
Darius returned.
No sound.
No warning.
Just there.
"…It's clear."
Everyone looked up.
"The path to the kingdom is open."
A pause.
"…No movement. No resistance."
He looked at them all.
"…We move."
No hesitation.
They stood.
And just like that—
The moment ended.
But something had changed.
Not in the world.
In them.
End Of Chapter 38