Chapter 30: 29. Connections

Anxiety and a bit of excitement were the feelings inside of Jake’s chest during the initial walk out of the village. Defeat and disappointment squeezed down on him during the walk back. He was ashamed and embarrassed, tired and dispirited from his poor showing. The mental picture he had initially shown himself was one of glorious victory. He envisioned a field of mana crystals and stacked Maedra corpses at his feet. He expected to march through the tunnel like an unstoppable force of nature. After all of his efforts, he at least expected victory in some fashion. Instead, they had run. The Maudraga had arrived behind the initial Maedra wave and Jake sealed the tunnel, giving himself, Mora, and the Warriors time to retreat. Their retreat was the opposite of everything he wanted.

The only rewards he had to show for his actions were a handful of mana crystals that the Warriors were able to collect and a shattered sword. He was filthy and sweaty, and traces of Maedra spittle clung to his skin. He felt gross and his muscles were tired. His clothes were tattered and a few scratches and bruises littered his arms. It was hard to think that anything good had come out of the expedition but Jake needed to. He had to look to the positives of his experience. Otherwise, he knew his mind would never recover.

Perfection was an impossible thing to achieve and expecting the battle to go exactly as planned had been a failure in itself. Jake had set himself up to fail with such an expectation. Instead, he should have been cautious. He should have listened to Mora or let her lead the expedition to learn from her rather than try to play the big boy card. He should have planned contingencies. He should have paid more attention to his surroundings.

Moments like this would come often, he knew that. Taking such a difficult mission right away had been foolish from the start. If he truly wanted to be successful, he should have used magic the entire time rather than try to use his sword. Even then, though, he still would have failed. Jake hadn’t accounted for the distance requirement for his spells. They were weak and practically useless when the Maedra were on top of him. He would need to develop a new way to cast or find a way to strengthen his spells to make up for that weakness.

Regardless of his feelings and the fresh knowledge gained from his failure- it was still a failure. Mora and the Warrior teams had bailed him out. They had sacrificed their well-being to make up for his inability to hold off the Maedra. If it weren’t for them, he would be dead and the tunnel left open and exposed. The Warriors had done their job and earned their keep. They had sustained no casualties during the fight but plenty of wounds to be treated. Mora looked tired and annoyed but she didn’t speak down on Jake. She didn’t speak to him at all, actually, nor did she even look at him. Jake trudged behind her, dragging his feet as he followed the group back.

The Warriors were still in high spirits. They bumped and chattered with one another about the fight, making jokes and generally filling the air with a decent level of good morale. A fight with the Maedra where no one died was a victory to them and they would take their wins where they could. The tunnel had been closed and they would have to report the danger of opening it again but they had made off with enough of a haul to feed their bellies. Their positives were easy to find and unlike Jake, they had conducted themselves well. The expedition was a failure but they would get their share for protecting the Scouts.

“Damn it,” Jake mumbled, kicking a loose rock as he walked. He hung his head and curled his hands into fists. He wanted to punch something. Moreso, he wanted to use his magic. He wanted to tear open the tunnel behind him and throw dozens of spells down it at the Maudraga. He wanted to slaughter the Maedra that had foiled his plans. He wanted to show the Warriors just how powerful he was, but there would be none of that. Not today. Not anymore.

As they returned to the village, the Warriors showed their green permits and were allowed in. Jake and Mora showed their own and followed behind. Inside, the Warriors split the mana crystals with Mora and Jake before they bid their brief farewell. Mora then split the crystals further and left Jake with a small sack of his own. He had failed to do much beyond nearly get them killed so she accounted for that by taking even more from him. Jake kept his complaints to himself. Without a word, they too returned to their Association.

Once they stepped into the Scout compound, only then did Mora finally acknowledge him. She slowed her stride to match his and let out a sigh. Her head tilted as her eye peered down at him. Jake couldn’t meet that gaze of hers. He didn’t deserve to.

“Death in the tunnels is quick. The Beasts are crafty, relentless, and powerful. It’s why we fight in groups, not alone.” Mora spoke harshly but Jake didn’t flinch. She was doing her best to offer advice even though he already understood most of what she was saying. “There are no heroes in these tunnels, Jake. Heroics get you killed. Hopefully, you’ve learned that now.”

Mora then opened her stride again and left Jake behind. He stopped in the middle of the courtyard, watching her as she vanished beyond the large Association doors. He felt gutted. Being the hero wasn’t what he had tried to do. He only wanted to show his strength, to show that he wasn’t an incompetent and utterly useless individual. He wanted to prove his worth and show that he could hold his own against the Maedra. After bearing the weight of Mora’s condescending eye she had shown him before, Jake wanted to remove any doubt about his capabilities. That was what he wanted. He didn’t want to be some flashy hero or some amazing person. He just wanted recognition for his efforts. Was that so hard to ask for?

Jake frowned and clenched his teeth, holding back the emotions that tugged at his heart. There were so many things he felt in his chest that he couldn’t comprehend all of them. All he could do was stare at the ground, at his feet. First, he began to sob, to suck in air. Then, the first tears streaked down his cheeks. He sniffled and huffed, fighting the emotions that whirled inside of him. It was painful. Their eyes, their laughs. The lightweight of the sack in his hands. It all hurt so much. Failure was heavy.

“Jake?”

Jake felt the world freeze as he heard the familiar voice, the one voice he didn’t want to hear at that moment. He didn’t look up at her. He didn’t acknowledge it. Even as she walked over to him and stood beside him, Jake forced his eyes to close.

“Are you hurt? What happened?” The gentle voice, the caring words. The soft touch to his arm. Jake felt her genuine desire to help him but it only hurt him that much more. How could he tell her he had failed so poorly? That his foolish antics had nearly got him killed? She had trusted that he would be fine and he had assured her that he would prevail. Yet here he was. A beaten and kicked dog. The only victory he had to speak of was the fact that he wasn’t dead.

“I… I don’t want to talk about it.” Jake softly pushed her away and walked towards the Association building. He only took two steps before her hand was on his arm again.

“Jake, you look hurt. Let me-”

Jake ripped his arm free and whirled around, his eyes hard as he glared at Yae. She blinked and pulled away, stepping back as she held her hand to her chest. His teeth ground together as he squeezed his jaw shut. He felt a fire in his face as he searched for the words to say. The knot in his throat kept him from talking.

Yae’s expression remained soft and full of worry. Her tender expression- he couldn’t look at it anymore. He turned away and pulled the small brown sack of crystals into his chest.

“Please. Just… Just leave me alone.” Not looking back, Jake left Yae standing there. He clung to the crystals in the bag and escaped into the haven of the Association’s doors.

Jake scanned the clerk stations for an open seat but found them all to be busy. So, if he was going to wait, he made his way back to Kithri and stood in line. The scouts ahead of him were processed rather quickly and eventually, it was Jake’s turn. He stepped up and placed his sack of crystals on the counter.

“Ah, Jake! You’ve returned… Whoa, what happened?” Kithri’s smile faded as she got a better look at Jake but the boy shook his head. He slid his ticket across the counter and stared down at it.

“We had to seal the tunnel. There were too many Beasts and we almost were overwhelmed,” Jake spoke loudly and clearly to present his report, but his eyes remained lowered. He never saw Kithri’s expression as she retrieved the ticket and scribbled down on it.

“Are these crystals all you could gather?” She asked. Jake shook his head.

“The majority of the loot was split with the Warrior teams and Mora, who was with me before,” he explained. Kithri pulled the sack over to her side and poured the crystals onto her desk. She examined a few of them, scribbled something down onto the ticket, and then gathered the crystals back into the bag. She whistled, rather than shout, and summoned a runner. She passed them the ticket and the sack of crystals. The runner departed swiftly.

“Thank you for your hard work, Jake. I’m sorry to hear of the tunnel but we’ll make sure to mark it on our boards as very dangerous. You said you sealed it? How?” Kithri continued to write on another piece of paper and glanced up at Jake as she waited for him to speak. He hesitated but finally built up the courage to talk. It wasn’t Kithri’s fault he had failed and the information she was asking for likely would be used for future expeditions.

“I used Rock magic to create a wall. I sealed the tunnel and closed it off. The Beasts were using magic. If I hadn’t made it, they would have hit the Warriors.” Jake said. Black ink scribbled onto the paper in front of Kithri as she documented the remarks.

“How many of the Beasts did you encounter? How did they fight? You said they used magic? What kind?”

“The Beasts were waiting for us, it was a trap. They blended into the walls and the floor and used their magic crystals as bait. When we were close, the Beasts pulled their bodies out of the stones and used mana to form themselves and fight. We fought at least fifty but there were more further beyond where we fought.” Jake paused for a moment, focusing next on the magic. It was simple magic. The same he saw when he was with Chul. The Maudraga threw masses of mana at them. Highly volatile and dangerous, but no actual element attached to counter them.

“The magic was just balls of mana thrust into the air and fired at us. No specific elements were attached but they were highly dangerous. The best way to deal with them is to use overwhelming magic against their spells to cause them to explode, or to form barriers or walls to block them.” Kithri’s pen danced across the paper as Jake spoke, the clerk’s nimble hand quickly putting Jake’s experience to history.

“Did you see any of these Beast mages?” She asked. Jake shook his head. The Maudraga had fired from well beyond his Sensory Magic and beyond his night vision. However, he knew what they looked like.

“No, but I’ve encountered them before,” he said. At his admittance, Kithri’s eyes widened.

“You have?” She asked, a bit frightened. Jake nodded.

“Yes. They are like the Beasts in both form, shape, and flesh. They tend to have four legs instead of two but are very agile and mobile. One of their arms is always molded into a sort of club, with the end of it being smooth and round. They use the mana within their crystals as the source of their magic, and they expend their life force to fire off their spells. Once they run out of mana in their crystals, they die on their own. The beasts eat each other and consume the mana in one another to gain this power.”

“That’s quite specific,” Kithri stared at Jake but she hadn’t written anything down. He frowned and looked at the counter, remembering Chul’s battle against the Maedra. He could still hear Chul explain the Maedra to him.

“It’s true and the Beast mages aren’t even the last form the Beasts can take.” Knowing that his report would likely be read by someone higher up, he wanted to share the knowledge he had of the Maedra. But, it didn’t seem that Kithri was going to play along. Her pen didn’t move nor did she ask any more questions. She only stared at him.

“That’s an interesting statement. For now, we’ll end your report here,” she said. Jake felt a bit cheated but she was firm. He would be wasting his breath at this point. She returned her pen to the inkwell and placed his report into a small pile off to the side. The runner returned shortly after and passed her a small sack, which she then passed to Jake. It was his payment. A few round silver and brown coins were gathered inside.

“Here is your payment for the crystals and your expedition. We’ve had to deduct some of your rewards to compensate the Warrior’s expenses as well as the result of the sealed tunnel. Unfortunately, we’ll have to clear the wall you made to continue down it. Sorry, Jake, but again- thank you for your effort.” Kithri bowed her head and then gave him a small smile, one Jake felt was forced.

Jake sighed and took his meager reward and stepped away from the counter. He should have expected as much. The expedition was a failure, of course. The fact he was paid at all was a surprise. He wouldn’t argue with their determination to take more money and accepted it as just another lesson. He gripped the top of the sack tightly and made his way into the hallway behind the counters, heading back to the Pharos meeting room.

Mora was standing outside the door when he walked up. She stood there with her eye closed and arms crossed as if napping while she waited. When she heard his feet, she looked over at him. Jake averted his eyes and dropped his head again. He didn’t see her throw something at him, and the object smacked his head. Jake grunted as he stepped back, holding the side of his head where he had been hit.

“We’ve all been in your shoes, kid. Don’t take it too hard.” Mora spoke in her casual, gruff tone and then grabbed the door handle. “Besides. Ignoring your brushing me off and walking into the ambush, you did fine. If you hadn’t targeted the Beasts in the back or put up that wall, we’d be dead. Consider that my thanks.” Mora pushed the door open and stepped into the room, leaving it open.

Jake looked at what she had thrown at him. It was another brown sack, and a few coins had spilled out of it. Her payment for the expedition. Jake wanted to argue with her, to throw it back, but he didn’t. Whether she had given the money to him out of pity or out of genuine thanks, returning the gift would be a slap in her face. The way she fought in that tunnel told Jake just how much she had been through. Her angry expression told him also how much she too hated the Maedra. Though violent, Mora had her reasons.

He picked up the second sack of coins, collected that which had spilled, and then made his way into the squad room. Nuro wasn’t at his desk to meet them nor were most of the others. Aside from Mora who had just walked in, the only other people inside were Fien and Lao. Lao was tinkering again, and Fien was sitting in the kitchen area. She glanced over at Jake for a moment. Her attention lasted for barely a blink before she returned to gnawing on the fruit in her hand. Mora made her way over to the equipment area and began to strip herself of her weapons and outer layer of clothes.

“Your sword broke, didn’t it?” Mora called. Jake looked down at his hip. The hilt of his blade jutted outwards from the scabbard. While it certainly looked fine, half of the scabbard was empty.

“Yea,” Jake sighed.

“We’ll go get you another one, and some better gear.” Mora pulled out a towel and began to wipe off her dirty skin. It wasn’t as good as a bath but she did what she could. “Lao,” she shouted. The Oryk hummed out a response, his attention mainly on the project in front of him. “You’re coming with us.”

Lao answered with another hum, paused, and then turned around in his chair.

“No! Every time I go out with you into the city, you end up drunk and I have to pull you out of some filthy gutter!” Lao wagged his wrench angrily at the woman and sneered at her. He looked as if he might throw the thing if she pushed further. But, facing his threat, Mora shrugged.

“That’s only on the weekends, and it’s not every time. I want you to introduce Jake to your friend. Figure he could work out a deal for us.”

“Absolutely not!” Lao huffed and turned away, returning to his project. “I’ve had enough of your shenanigans, Mora. I won’t waste my time again!”

“So, you’re just going to let our newbie run around with half a sword? Quite the first impression, Lao.” Mora planted her arms on the equipment area’s work counter and bent over it. Her eye narrowed as she stared at Lao’s back. It seemed she wasn’t going to stop until she got her way.

Jake sighed and shook his head.

“It’s fine. I’ll go find someone in the village myself,” Jake said. He turned away and stepped towards the door. Before he could reach the door, Lao slammed his wrench onto the table.

“Fine! FINE!” Lao balked. “But no alcohol! I swear, if you so much as look at a bar funny, I’m leaving!” Lao glared at Mora again but the woman only smiled at him. It was one of the most insincere-looking expressions Jake had ever seen. Smug and vile, as if she was now planning to drink until she was a corpse just to spite Lao. For Jake’s sanity, he hoped she wouldn’t.

Lao hopped off his chair and grumbled as he put on a black coat and snatched up a shoulder bag. He draped the strap across his chest and then pushed in the chairs to each of his workbenches. He cleaned up the surrounding areas as best as he could, put away the loose tools, and then put on a pair of thick black boots. In the meantime, Mora cleaned herself up further and changed her shirt. She too put on a black jacket and then made her way to the door.

“Fien, tell Nuro we’re in town if he needs us.” Mora waved politely at Fien who nodded as she bit into a red fruit. The girl folded her arms onto the kitchen counter and then plopped her head down onto them, likely to take a nap. Was she a cat?

“Onward, for adventure!” Lao suddenly spat as he marched out of the room. Jake felt weird about following him but Mora practically shoved him out of the room. The door was slammed shut and Lao led the way down the hall. As they approached the main room, Mora shot Jake a sharp glare.

“Don’t even think about jumping or I’ll knock your head off downstairs,” she warned. Jake swallowed hard and nodded. While he hadn’t been planning to jump in the first place, he definitely wouldn’t try to do it now. Mora didn’t seem like the type to joke about violence.

Lao led Jake and Mora out of the Scout's compound and into the village, where he made a beeline for the far end of the long market strip. The village was split down the middle by the wide and busy street where most of the businesses had set themselves up. Numerous stalls and street peddlers lined the road and a crowd of people had gathered to shop and trade. However, Lao’s destination wasn’t in the busy section of the market. Jake kept his mouth shut and his coin tight to his body as they moved from the lively upper end of the street to the much quieter lower end.

While the lighting was the same and the road hadn’t narrowed or dipped, the buildings certainly looked less maintained and the number of patrons was far less. Mora looked less stressed now that they were out of the congested area. Lao was unbothered by either.

“Seems he’s still open. Stubborn fool,” Lao said aloud suddenly. Jake couldn’t see where he was looking or what he was speaking about but he figured they were close. They were. Lao didn’t walk much further before he stopped and suddenly turned to face a small building. One that looked like it could collapse at any second. A hammer and anvil sign dangled against the door, held up by a thin string and a nail. The large space where a window likely had been was boarded up, as the window itself had been removed.

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Lao didn’t knock as he strode into the establishment.

“Hulgrok! HULGROK! I’ve brought a customer!”

“I don’ need yer customers, Lao! Always problems with ya!” A voice boomed from the back of the shop, the powerful voice echoing out even into the street where Jake still stood. He threw a glance up at Mora. Mora just shrugged and motioned for him to lead the way. Jake sighed and strolled in after Lao.

The inside of the building wasn’t much better than the outside. The walls were cracked and the wood looked aged. The floor had a few holes in it and the counter was dented in the middle. Even the ceiling had holes, but those were largely patched with haphazardly placed planks. The front area of the shop was also small, and there was very little equipment out on display.

Two steel armor pieces were set up directly to Jake’s left, positioned to be viewed from the street had there been a window. A row of shields hung from the wall behind the armor suits, and a few swords were placed above the shields. Daggers were scantly placed on a small counter beneath the shields and two pairs of gauntlets were set next to the daggers. Chainmail and thinner armor were set on a low table between the dagger counter and the main counter splitting the front of the shop from the back. To Jake’s right, leather armor hung from the wall, with various helmets of different materials and shapes sitting beneath the hanging displays. Then, lastly- in a bucket, an array of spears, pikes, poles, and long swords were all gathered for someone to sift through.

It was a meager shop and while it had some level of organization, Jake didn’t see anything of high quality. The work on display reflected the skill of the shop owner. What Jake saw wasn’t very enticing. He didn’t feel confident that he would get anything good from this place. Everything set out looked cheap, of low quality, and barely functional. Then again- Jake didn’t have a whole lot of money to afford anything better.

“This one is a member of my squad, so he’s trustworthy!” Lao shouted as he crawled up onto a chair at the main counter. There was no one behind it, so Jake assumed this Toa person was behind the cracked door on the other side.

“Ye lie as easily as ye breathe!” The man belted. Lao rolled his eye and pounded the table.

“Would you stop being so stubborn?!”

“Once ye stop actin’ all high and mighty, Mr. ‘I work for a Red Squad so I’m too good for my friends now’!”

“Is that what this is about?! Just because I didn’t come to last week’s session?!”

“No! It’s because of all the times you ditched us for that gaudy-lookin’ whore!” Suddenly, the door was slammed open. Out from behind it, a thickly built man emerged. He was just barely tall enough to peek over the counter but he was wide enough to fill the wooden door frame he squeezed between. It was a dwarf.  He paused halfway to the counter, his eyes locking with Mora’s.

“Oh look. Ye’ve brought anotha!” He threw up his hands as he shouted. Lao began to panic. He turned and put up his hands to stop Mora as she attempted to draw her sword and climb over the counter.

“I’m a what?!” She seethed, trying to yank her blade from its scabbard as Lao desperately tried to hold her back. Jake separated himself from the situation and took a few steps back.

“What, he didn’t pay ya fer yer time? Ya must be a cheap one!” The dwarf howled as he began to laugh. Jake felt the temperature in the room rise as Mora shoved Lao backward and out of the way. She was halfway across the counter when someone else appeared from the backroom.

“Okay, that’s enough Hulgrok. Shut it before you lose your last two brain cells.” The man shoved Hulgrok out of the way and stepped up to Mora, who was about to chase the stumbling ball of muscle and meat. “Please don’t mind him. He’s sour because business sucks on this end of the market strip but he’s too stubborn to buy a building further up.” The man held up both hands as he tried to calm the situation. Lao tugged desperately on Mora’s leg, also trying to pull her off the counter. Mora hissed at the dwarf and elected to save herself the effort, putting her blade away as she stepped back from the counter.

“Ah,” the dwarf sighed. “And it was just gettin’ good,” he mumbled. The dwarf stroked his long, glorious black beard as he stepped up onto something behind the counter. His upper body became more visible to Jake, who was similarly a bit too short to see much. In doing so the dwarf exposed his brown apron and sooted clothes. “What have you come for, Lao?”

“Nothing but he has.” Lao turned to Jake. Everyone else turned their attention to him as well, and Jake suddenly felt the spotlight to be a bit much. He grabbed the hilt of his sword and pulled it free, exposing the broken end. The dwarf huffed and shook his head.

“Ya young ones are always too rough on yer gear. Bring it here, boy.” The dwarf motioned for Jake to come closer and he grumbled as he stroked his beard. Jake obliged and stepped up to the counter. He placed the blade onto the wood and Hulgrok picked it up. He placed a small circular object over his right eye. A green sigil flared in the middle of the glass, and then the object began to glow as Hulgrok inspected the sword.

“Poorly made but it was kept in good condition. I applaud you, boy, for working with such a sad blade. I am not surprised to see it broken.” The dwarf grumbled as he chucked the blade over his shoulder and into a pile of other broken weapons. It seemed Jake wouldn’t be getting that back.

“Can you make another?” Lao asked. Hulgrok raised an eyebrow as he shot the Oryk a side-long glance.

“No, I’m a jeweler.” Sarcasm laced his words. Hulgrok scoffed and hopped off the platform behind the counter as he made his way towards the door. “Of course, I can make anotha' ya fool! The question is what can ya afford!” The dwarf disappeared into the back part of the store briefly. Jake placed the two sacks of money on the counter and waited for him to return. The man standing beside the door stared down at the sacks of coins and frowned. Was it not enough?

Hulgrok returned, his grumbling continuing as he returned to the platform. When he popped up, his eyes locked onto the two coin sacks. He wasn’t entertained by the lacking sight.

“Y’er fuckin’ wit me.” The dwarf spat.

“It’s all I have,” Jake muttered. Hulgrok dumped the coin onto the counter, emptying both sacks onto the wood. His eyes swirled through the mass of small metal before he looked up at Jake.

“I’ll make ye a dagga’ for this price. But that’s it.”

“He needs a sword, Hulgrok,” Lao said. Hulgrok bellowed a laugh.

“Ya, and I need to make a livin’. This is barely enough to cover the materials, let alone my sorrows and labors. I won’t even be able tah drink for this cost!” Hulgrok groaned as he gathered the money into his fat hands. He dumped it all into a larger sack and then tossed it towards the man beside him. “Ready the forge. Boy,” Hulgrok turned to look at Jake.

“Come back in a day and I will have ya dagga’.” Hulgrok turned and was about to jump down, but Jake held up a hand and spoke quickly.

“I have one request,” Jake said. Hulgrok looked at him and huffed.

“Ya don’t have money fer such a thing,” Hulgrok spat before hopping down. He lumbered into the back part of the store and then slammed the door closed.

Jake sighed and took a long look around the shop. There were a few things he was interested in purchasing but as the dwarf mentioned- he didn’t have the funds. Money entered his hands and left just as quickly. He would need to make more of it if he wanted to better equip himself. For now, he needed to wait.

“Well, that settles that. Now before I get wrapped up in any more surprises, I’m leaving and returning to my workbench. Science calls.” Lao hopped off the stool and quickly fled the store, leaving Mora and Jake behind.

“Sorry, kid. Looks like all you’re getting is a knife. Hope it works for you. See you tomorrow.” Mora waved her hand briefly before she too left the store. Jake looked towards the back door one last time before he decided to leave. Outside, he took a brief look around to familiarize himself with the area, and then he headed up the street and towards the commotion of the upper area.

He didn’t return to the Scout compound. Nor did he go home. Instead, he made his way out to the lake. He didn’t want to risk bumping into Yae again, not yet. After running away from her he wanted some time to put together what to say, how to apologize, and to ready himself to look at her. She looked truly hurt when he had pulled away from her so he knew he would have to be careful when dealing with her again. Well, that was the plan. But as he’d learned- plans never went the way they were supposed to.

He popped out of the side of the village and made his way along the winding route to the edge of the lake. As he approached his usual spot there was someone already there, and she was already staring at him. At the water’s edge, a small and thin figure was facing his direction. Yae sat there, curled up, her eye staring straight at him as he came into view. She had been waiting for him it seemed. Since she had seen him, there was no running. If he did Jake knew it would shatter her. So much for wanting some private time.

Jake frowned and walked up to her. He did his best not to meet her gaze as he sat down, taking his usual seat beside the water. He couldn’t help but see her though. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Yae staring at him. He could feel her eye burning into his very core as she stared at the side of his face. While he could see her lips quiver and move, she said nothing. Jake stared at the water and began to grab a few small rocks that he could skip across the crystal clear reflection of the cavern. His mind raced but time was running out. He knew he needed to say something… So, he did his best. To start-

“I’m sorry,” he muttered. Yae let out a brief murmur at him- a hum of acknowledgment. She wanted more. Jake swallowed a lump in his throat and threw another rock to try and buy himself time.

Then, she kicked him.

“Ow,” he spat as he finally looked at her. She was pissed. He met that glare for a single breath before he turned away again.

“I’m sorry for running away.” She kicked him again. Jake hissed and swatted at her small foot, just to get another kick in the arm. “Would you sto-...” His voice trailed off as he grabbed her ankle. It was thin, frail. A doll’s leg. Jake frowned again and let her go. He looked down at the water, pausing for a long moment before he let out a sigh.

“I failed today,” he said. Yae nodded briefly, encouraging him to continue. “I was cocky and overestimated myself. I thought my training would be enough and I thought the Beasts would just fall over easily. When they didn’t, I couldn’t react. I couldn’t fight. They swarmed me. Mora and the Warriors had to save me. Then, when I rejoined the fight and we started winning, the Beasts started to use magic. So I sealed the tunnel and we ran.” He spilled the story, never once looking away from the water as he spoke. Yae didn’t interrupt or make a sound until he was finished. When he was, she rolled onto her knees and placed a hand on her arms.

“Is that why you’re scratched up?” She asked, her voice soft. Jake nodded.

“The Beasts had set an ambush. Mora tried to warn me but I ignored her and walked into it. When I tried to fight back, they almost killed me.” He didn’t want to lie to her, so he didn’t hide the details. Yae frowned, her expression souring further.

“I told you to be careful,” Yae muttered.

“I’m sorry. I was overconfident.” Jake admitted his failure but it didn’t heal the pain on Yae’s face. She held out her hands and closed her eyes. Her hands began to glow as she tended to his small wounds. The cuts and scratches on his arms and legs closed up. The scabs on his skin fell away. His bruises turned yellowish before fading back to the white of his natural skin color. He could have handled them himself but had left them as petty reminders. Not tending to them was his way of pouting.

“Do you understand why the scouts don’t fight?” She whispered. “Why they always go out with Warriors and let them do it?” Jake placed a hand on her shoulder as she began to shake.

“I do now. I believed the Beasts would be weak and easy to beat. I didn’t know they were so tough.” Jake spoke as gently as he could but his words fell on deaf ears as Yae swatted his hand away.

“You don’t get it, Jake,” she spat. “You’re a scout. It doesn’t matter how tough or strong the beasts are. You don’t have to fight them. You shouldn’t fight them.” Her voice cracked as she became more emotional. Her tone raised slightly as she tugged on his sleeve. She squeezed and pulled on the fabric, her hair blocking the view of her face as she shivered there. The grip weakened as she pulled it away. “But I know you’ll try again,” she whispered. She moved away from him and slowly stood up.

Something felt off, and Jake felt his stomach flip.

“You’ll try and try and try. You’ll rush out into the tunnels to fight no matter how much we tell you not to. You’ll continue to train, to push yourself, and you’ll just say you need to be better or you need to learn more.” Yae’s voice shook as she stared down at him. Tears began to streak down her face. “And they’re gonna get you, Jake. The beasts don’t care about how much you train or how much you learn. They’re going to kill you, and all we’re going to be left with is a stupid card saying that you won’t be coming back!”

Yae’s voice echoed over the lake as she shouted, and it echoed in Jake’s chest. He turned away from her painful gaze and stared down at the reflection of the cavern.

“I can’t just sit here, Yae. I can’t be like Tul and Xul and spend my time in the compound. I have to get stronger, and I have to fight the Beasts.” Jake needed to fight. Not for money and not just for his personal gains. He needed to fight to get back to the surface, to his Auntie. He needed to get stronger so he could face the other challenges beyond this pit. There was more to the world than the Ravine, and he knew he needed to be strong if he wanted to explore it all. Dealing with the Maedra was just the first step to it.

“No, you can’t. You won’t be in this village forever, Jake. Ever since I met you, your eyes have always been looking off to places I’ll never see, that I’ll never know, but you’ve never once looked right in front of you. Have you?” Yae snapped and kicked the ground. A cloud of dust and small pebbles struck Jake’s side. He flinched and covered his face, while Yae took that moment to run off.

“Yae!” Jake shouted for her but she continued to run. As much as he wanted to, he didn’t chase her. He had no right to because she wasn’t wrong.

This Ravine wasn’t his home, nor was it a place he could live forever. He knew that from the beginning. This was his first adventure and it was proving to be a perfect foundation for his future ones. He was learning how to fight and how to use his magic properly. He was developing in ways he had never thought he ever would. After losing Chul, Jake knew he would need to carve his own path to power, and the Maedra was proving to be a perfect foe to hone his aggression on. They were dangerous, fast, and well-equipped. Fighting them would require a multitude of skills that Jake would need to develop to survive.

However, all of that training wasn’t to make this village a safer place. It was to make Jake stronger so he could leave it. She was right. His mind had always been on the after. He still thought of his Auntie, of Elana. He could still feel the sand between his toes and he yearned to feel the heat of the sun again. His dreams were full of wide meadows, sprawling towns and cities, and a range of other beautiful sights he hoped to see in the world. None of that included the Ravine or Ewana.

Ewana was all Yae knew, though. Unlike Jake, this was her world. Ewana was everything to her. Her family was here and her future would be here as well. Sure, the Maedra were looming in the dark and there was the daily threat that the Maedra would find Ewana. Even if Ewana were to fall- Yae would have nowhere to go. Jake doubted she would run off or flee if the Maedra came.

Jake thought of them as close friends, even as a family, but in the end, he knew it wasn’t the case. Yae knew it, too. Jake was a passing ghost to them. He would be a story they would tell their children, a memory of a friend long gone who never returned after he left the village.

He gripped a rock and turned towards the lake. Angrily, he threw it at the mirrored reflection staring back at him.

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