Morning did not bring warmth.
It brought visibility.
Gray light filtered through the ash clouds, revealing the dead forest in harsh detail. Charred trunks. Broken branches. Patches of trampled ground where predators had passed hours earlier. The smell of blood still lingered, faint but unmistakable.
Dominic waited until the light strengthened before moving.
"Slow," he said quietly.
Lysa nodded and adjusted her grip on the branch he had given her. Her face was tight with pain, but she did not complain. Each step was deliberate. Each breath measured.
They climbed out of the ravine and headed west, away from the blood trail. Dominic chose a path that followed uneven ground, avoiding clear lines of sight. His eyes never stopped moving.
Water was the priority. Food came second. Shelter came last.
They moved for nearly an hour before Dominic spotted it. A shallow stream cutting through a dip in the land, its surface dull and gray beneath the ash. It was narrow and slow-moving, but it was water.
He raised a hand and stopped.
"Wait," he said.
Lysa leaned against a tree, breathing hard. "What."
"Tracks," Dominic replied.
He crouched near the stream's edge, studying the mud. Small prints. Human. Barefoot. Several sets, moving in different directions.
A meeting point.
People gathered here. That meant danger. It also meant information.
Dominic straightened slowly.
"We do not stay," he said. "We take water and leave."
Lysa frowned. "We need more than that."
"We need to live," he replied.
He tore another strip from his shirt, soaked it in the stream, and wrung it out into his mouth. The water tasted metallic, but cleaner than the puddle from before. His stomach cramped, then settled.
He repeated the process and handed the cloth to Lysa.
She drank carefully, then sighed. "Better than dying thirsty."
"Yes."
As they prepared to move on, Dominic felt the familiar awareness rise behind his eyes. It was stronger than before. Sharper.
[Continuum Evaluation System]
Observation depth increased
Subject behavior: Pattern recognition
Risk assessment accuracy: Improving
Dominic paused mid-motion.
That was new.
Not a number. Not a probability.
An assessment.
He did not acknowledge it outwardly. Instead, he focused on the feeling that accompanied the message. A subtle pressure, like a lens tightening. The system was not just watching actions anymore.
It was watching how he thought.
They moved on.
By midday, Dominic's body began to protest more aggressively. The initial adrenaline had worn off. Pain radiated from his chest with every step. His breathing grew shallower, sharper.
He adjusted his pace without stopping.
Stopping invited death.
They reached a low ridge overlooking a stretch of broken land dotted with crude tents and wooden frames. Smoke drifted upward in thin trails.
A camp.
Dominic lowered himself behind a fallen trunk and motioned for Lysa to do the same.
She peered over the ridge and cursed under her breath. "Scavengers."
"How many," Dominic asked.
She squinted. "Ten. Maybe twelve. Two armed."
Too many.
The scavengers moved lazily, confident. One kicked at something on the ground and laughed. Another dragged a sack toward a fire.
Dominic watched them carefully. Their movements were sloppy. No perimeter. No sentries.
They were not afraid of attack.
Because nothing here attacked groups.
Dominic weighed the options.
Avoiding the camp meant a longer route and no food. Approaching meant risk.
He turned to Lysa. "What do they do with people."
She did not hesitate. "Sell them. Trade them. Or leave them."
"Kill."
"Sometimes."
Dominic nodded.
He waited until the scavengers' attention drifted inward, then began to crawl back from the ridge.
"We go around," he said.
Lysa exhaled in relief.
They skirted the camp wide, keeping low and using terrain to stay hidden. It took longer. Dominic's legs trembled by the time they cleared the area.
When they finally stopped beneath a cluster of leaning trees, he sank to one knee.
Lysa caught his arm. "You are worse."
"I know."
She hesitated, then reached into her torn pack and pulled out a small, wrapped bundle. She unwrapped it to reveal a strip of dried meat.
"I was saving it," she said. "But you will collapse if you do not eat."
Dominic stared at the meat.
Sharing resources reduced individual survival probability. The system had already noted that.
He took it anyway.
"Thank you," he said.
She blinked. "You sound like you mean that."
"I do."
He ate slowly, forcing his body to accept the food. Strength seeped back into his limbs in small increments. Not enough. But something.
The awareness returned.
[Continuum Evaluation System]
Resource exchange logged
Short term survival probability unchanged
Long term variance: Increased
Dominic almost smiled.
The system did not say whether that increase was good or bad.
As the day wore on, they encountered signs of civilization. Broken road stones. A toppled marker bearing faded symbols. A shallow ditch that had once been a boundary.
They were approaching the outskirts of something larger.
Lysa slowed. "Virel is not far," she said.
Dominic stopped. "City."
"Yes."
"Guards."
"Yes."
"Slums."
"Yes."
He nodded once.
Cities meant rules. Rules meant predictability. Predictability meant leverage.
They crested a final rise as the sun dipped behind ash clouds again.
Virel City sprawled before them.
Stone walls ringed the outer districts, uneven and scarred. Towers rose above them, banners hanging limp in the stagnant air. Smoke curled from dozens of chimneys. Movement flickered along the walls.
Life.
Dominic studied the city with narrowed eyes.
"This place eats people," he said.
Lysa laughed softly. "You learn fast."
They descended toward the outskirts as night fell again. Torches flickered along crude roads. Figures moved in clusters. Voices rose and fell.
Dominic slowed his pace deliberately.
Inside the city, strength would not be measured only by muscle or monsters. It would be measured by connections, coin, and cruelty.
As they approached the slums, a group of men stepped into the road ahead of them. Three. Armed with clubs and knives.
One grinned. "Lost."
Dominic did not answer.
The man's gaze flicked to Lysa's injured leg. His grin widened. "Looks like you found something valuable."
Dominic felt the system presence sharpen.
[Continuum Evaluation System]
Conflict probability rising
Subject decision point detected
Observation priority elevated
Dominic stepped forward slightly, placing himself between the men and Lysa.
"No," he said.
The men laughed.
Dominic adjusted his stance and tightened his grip on the jagged stone.
The system watched.
The city watched.
And Dominic Ashborne prepared to be evaluated again.