Page 14

Survival

T he gates of Selas were a welcome sight as all six of us stepped through them at last. It had been a long day and we were all exhausted.

The sun sat low on the horizon, the sky a riot of pinks, reds, and golds.

As soon as we were inside the city, we found a small bridge over the river, each of us perching against the stone handrail as we stared out at the twilight world around us.

“This place sure is beautiful,” Kai said, staring at the incredible landscape laid out before us.

“Beautiful,” Sky replied. “And dangerous.”

Kai nodded. “I think we learned that lesson well enough today.”

“Who cares?” Kuro scoffed. “We made bank!” He pumped his fist in the air, looking rather cartoonish in the process. I just rolled my eyes at him. “Come on! Let’s go sell that ore and get our money!”

The others looked ready to go, but neither Sky nor I moved.

“There… There is no ore,” Sky said simply, still staring at the sunset. “It’s gone.”

“Gone?” Kuro cried, suddenly turning on him. His face was red in an instant. “What the hell do you mean, gone?!”

“I mean,” Sky sighed, turning around at last. “That it’s gone. We lost it running from the elemental.”

“Bullshit. You’re just trying to keep it all for yourself!” Kuro drew his sword, brandishing it at Sky. “Give us our fucking fair share! We earned it you charlatan! ”

“It’s true,” I cut in, throwing an arm in front of Sky. “The ore is gone. Because… Because of me.”

Everyone just stared, Kuro’s sword tilting down away from Sky.

“The elemental wanted the ore, and it was going to kill us,” I explained, my hands wringing tightly around the handle of my staff. “It had us backed into a corner and we were going to die if I didn’t… if I didn’t throw it into the underground lake.”

Kuro’s jaw nearly hit the pavement. Mira and Rhia both looked surprised, but not angry. However, it was Kai who nodded, a smile on his face.

“That was good thinking,” he said softly, patting my shoulder. “And you both survived, so I’d say it was worth it.”

“Worth it?!” Kuro snapped. “Are you fucking kidding me?! You think these two losers are worth a mountain of gold?”

“Kuro,” Rhia warned, brandishing her fist. “Enough.”

“No!” he cried back, pointing his sword at us again. “We’re running out of money! We’ll be starving soon if we don’t kill something and just when we finally get our lucky break, dumbass here goes and throws it into an underground lake? I don’t fucking think so!”

Rhia stepped forward threateningly. For a moment I thought Kuro wouldn’t back down. However, while the anger on his face didn’t recede, he did sheathe his sword.

“Fuck this, man,” he said, giving us all a dismissive wave. “I’m out of here.”

“Kuro, wait,” Kai said, reaching for him. But Rhia stopped him, her hand on his chest.

“Let him be alone for a while,” she said simply. “He needs to think.”

Kai nodded, as if he understood. But I didn’t. Instead, all I felt was overwhelming guilt. The silence that fell over our group was heavy, broken only by the gentle babbling of the river beneath us. I couldn’t bring myself to look at anyone, my gaze fixed on the worn cobblestones at my feet.

“Hey,” Sky’s gruff voice startled me. I glanced up to see him studying me with those intense blue eyes. “You did what you had to do. We’re alive because of you.” He paused, his brows furrowed. “ I’m alive because of you.”

His words should have been comforting, but they only twisted the knot in my stomach tighter. “But now we have nothing to show for it. No ore, no money...”

“We have our lives,” Kai interjected gently. “That’s worth more than any amount of ore.”

Mira nodded, her blue hair catching the last rays of sunlight. “I-I agree,” she stammered, offering a timid smile. “I’d rather be alive and broke than dead with a fortune.”

Sky grunted in agreement, his wolf ears twitching slightly. “We’ll find another job. There’s always work for the RSB in Selas. It’s not like there’s a shortage of monsters out there.”

I nodded, trying to take comfort in their words. But the guilt still gnawed at me. “What about Kuro? He seemed really upset...”

Rhia snorted, crossing her muscular arms. “Kuro’s always upset about something. He’ll come around.”

“Or he won’t,” Sky muttered. “Either way, it’s not your problem.”

Kai shot Sky a disapproving look. “We’re a team. We should stick together.”

“Some team,” Sky scoffed. “One crisis and you’re already falling apart.”

“That’s not fair,” Mira piped up, her voice barely above a whisper. “We’ve only been working together for a short time. We’re still learning how to function as a unit.”

Sky’s ears flattened against his head, but he didn’t argue further. Instead, he turned back to the sunset, his tail swishing irritably behind him.

“It’s hard, you know?” she continued, her voice no longer trembling as she fidgeted nervously.

“We can’t remember anything and now we’re supposed to be monster hunters for a world we don’t know anything about…

” She paused for a moment, twirling her hair around her finger. “I just… I feel so lost sometimes.”

Rhia stepped over, wrapping a comforting arm around her as always.

“Mira’s right,” Kai said, his voice soft but firm. “We need to give ourselves time to grow together. Today was a setback, but it doesn’t define us.”

I nodded, grateful for Kai’s optimism. It was one of the things that had drawn me to him when we first met outside the portal. His ability to see the best in every situation was infectious.

“So, what now?” Rhia asked, her dark eyes scanning our faces. “We can’t exactly go back to headquarters empty-handed.”

“We will report what happened,” Kai replied. “Honestly and completely. The RSB needs to know about the elemental.”

“They know,” Sky interjected. “And they don’t care.”

“Surely they’ll want to send?—”

“They don’t send anyone out for anybody!” Sky roared, turning to face Kai with fangs bared. “The RSB doesn’t give a shit about you, me, or anyone else in this gods forsaken world! ”

We all stood there in silence, completely stunned by Sky’s sudden outburst. His words hung in the air, heavy and sharp. The tension was palpable, and for a moment, no one dared to break the silence. I watched as Sky’s chest heaved, his blue eyes wild with a mix of anger and... was that pain?

Kai was the first to recover, taking a cautious step towards Sky. “What do you mean, Sky? What happened to make you think that?”

Sky’s ears flattened against his head, his tail swishing agitatedly. He seemed to struggle with himself for a moment before speaking, his voice low and bitter. “That’s none of your damn business.” He gripped his spear tightly, turning away from us. “I’m leaving.”

“Sky, wait!” I began.

He stopped only for a moment, his furious eyes locking onto mine. “Don’t let any of them die,” he said quietly. Then, reaching into his pocket, produced a small cloth bag that tinkled like glass, and threw it to me. I caught it easily, my gaze still locked on him. “Thanks for the help.”

And with that, he was gone.

I watched Sky’s retreating form disappear into the growing shadows of Selas, my heart heavy with confusion and concern.

The weight of the small bag in my hand drew my attention, and I opened it carefully.

Inside were several dozen mana crystal clusters, the ones we’d helped him pick in the cave.

And there was one other thing, a small vial filled with blue liquid that I lifted gently from the pouch.

“Is that... a healing potion?” Mira asked, peering over my shoulder.

I nodded, still stunned by Sky’s abrupt departure. “He must have paid a fortune for this. I’ve only ever seen one at the cleric guild. They keep them locked up. Only the elders have the keys.”

Kai stepped closer, his brow furrowed. “That was... unexpected. I’ve never seen Sky so upset before.”

“There’s clearly more to his story than we know,” Rhia mused, her dark eyes still fixed on the spot where Sky had vanished.

I closed the bag and tucked it safely into my pocket. “Should we go after him?”

Kai shook his head. “I think he needs some space right now. We should respect that.” He paused for a moment. “And… he’s not part of our party. We need to learn to rely on ourselves better.”

I nodded reluctantly, still staring in the direction Sky had gone.

Part of me wanted to chase after him, to make sure he was okay.

But Kai was right - pushing Sky when he clearly wanted to be alone would only make things worse.

And he wasn’t part of our group either. Running into him was a happy accident.

The chances of that happening again were pretty slim.

My stomach twisted into another tight knot at the thought of not seeing him again.

Even after such a short time together, I felt drawn to him for some reason.

It didn’t take a lot of reflection to realize I’d developed a fondness for him, I just didn’t know why.

Maybe it was because he was so handsome.

Or maybe it was because we’d nearly been killed, and I was developing some sort of survivor’s attachment to him.

Either way, it didn’t matter. He was gone and my party needed me if we were all going to survive the RSB and Cindersea.

Besides, with our lives always on the line, who had time to date? Or even think about such a thing?

“So, what do we do now?” Mira asked quietly, clutching her wand close to her chest.

Rhia stretched her arms above her head, her muscles rippling. “First things first - we need food and rest. It’s been a long day.”

“Agreed,” Kai said with a nod. “Let’s go sell these crystals in the market and head to the tavern. We can get a decent dinner there and figure out our next move.”