Ch 18: This guy is hopeless.

Gripping Ace’s collar was a boy with blonde hair and gritted teeth.

“It was you, wasn’t it?” The grey words hung in the air, jagged and sharp.

Ace didn’t need to hear the words to know he was furious. The words themselves were written like a death threat.

Thundering, Ace could feel his heart leaping out of his chest. The fact that he didn’t even see Shell coming, never mind react in time, his life was practically dancing in his palm.

“Calm down. He didn’t know.” Oden raised his voice, but it didn’t reach Shell. His eyes were fixed on Ace, seething with anger.

Oden planted his hand firmly on Shell’s shoulder, ensuring that he turned to infer the words from his lips. “Is that any way a Captain treats a new member? Show the young man some respect.”

The grip on Ace softened before releasing, Shell's eyes brimming with competing emotion. The words “I’m sorry. I got ahead of myself,” appeared in the air, and he shrank back, retreating into the hallway.

Oden watched as Shell left. Turning back to Ace, with a clink of metal armour, the noble warrior dropped to one knee.

“I hope you’ll forgive him for his rudeness.”

“I-It’s ok. Really, you don’t have to-“ Ace stammered, taken aback by Oden’s sudden sincerity. It felt wrong for such a strong and noble warrior to be in such a pose.

“He cares a lot for Snow. He can be immature at times, but he’s a good kid at heart. Shell was too young to remember what happened, but it still gets to Snow sometimes. She’s quite shy and takes a while to warm up to people. Please be patient with her.”

When hearing rumours of the Spearhead, Ace didn’t know what to expect at first. But over the past few days, his first impressions had been moulding and reforming. These people were powerful weapons of war. But still people — equally scarred and flawed.

                                                                                 ***

The Phoenix Cradle – East Lake

“That damn little brat,” Hiro muttered, kicking the fallen leaves into the air. “Finally, some peace and quiet.”

The cyber-crows festered, circling in the air, their silhouettes dancing in the light of the rising sun. The breeze was gentle, soft like the sunlight, leaving small ripples in the water. A vibrant canvas of purple and yellow bordered the lake, supported by thick grey trunks. Serene and blissful, even the view itself was soothing Hiro’s anger.

There are some beautiful places in this world after all.

Hiro lit a cigarette, bathing in the sun’s embrace. A gust of wind shook the Sermilia, blowing an arc of purple and yellow into the air, and between the petals, he saw something that caught his eye.

"What are YOU doing here?" She quipped, her black and blue hair swaying in the wind while resting on the stone ledge above.

“I could ask you the same thing,” Hiro said, pulling his eyes away.

“I’m always here. This is practically my spot, you know?”

“I can see why. It’s so clean and pretty… and Oden’s snoring is like an earthquake.”

“Literally! I don’t know how he does it.” Mira said, spilling a small giggle. “It used to be even prettier. Now they only bloom for a few weeks. They used to be in full bloom all year round. It’s sad watching it all slowly whittle away.”

Whittle away. She must be talking about that—The Scourge.

“It’s coming, isn’t it? From the Barrens?”

“Who knows, it might reach the Cradle before winter. The leaves are already falling, even though it should be Spring. It’s even worse on the north side.”

First, it had taken the Barrens, and now it was coming for the neighbouring lands.

“It’s so beautiful…it’s such a shame.”

“You haven’t seen anything yet,” Mira said, hopping down from the stone ledge, her hand gesturing for Hiro to follow.

“Where ya taking me?” Hiro asked, the leaves crunching beneath his boots.

But instead of giving a reply, Mira turned, placing a finger on her lips.

Is she plotting something? I’m not about to be ambushed and my organs sold, am I? Ace will cry himself to sleep without me, I can’t let that happen.

Hiro’s footsteps slowed as they approached an opening in the rocks. A dim, murky cave with a wide entrance.

“What’s the matter? Scared?” Mira’s lips curled into a cheeky smile.

“Not even meeting with the Shadow of Death himself, would I be scared,” Hiro said, grinning as he followed her into the abyss. The smoke he blew from his lungs dissipated into the darkness.

“You do know that stinks, right? Why smoke?” Mira said, casting a small blue flame in her palm, a weak, flickering light floating through the enshrouding void.

“I began smoking after going through a really hard time,” Hiro’s eyes quivered with buried memories. “I guess it's stuck with me ever since.”

“Even though you know it’s bad for you?”

“Well, old habits die hard. When you get used to something for so long, you get stuck with it. What’s with all these questions? What are you doing in the Spearhead?”

“Hmm.” Mira pulled a playful leer as her footsteps quickened.

“It’s only fair you answer my questions too.” Hiro said, speeding up to match her pace.

“My mom worked for the Syndicate, so naturally I followed in her footsteps.”

“You must’ve had a good upbringing then. Why fight on the frontlines?”

“She was against it at first. Actually, she was always against it. She tried to do everything she could to make sure I didn’t. But I did it anyway. She used to be so angry every day. I don’t know how many lectures I’ve had to endure; she just went on and on and on… But she worked so hard to make a living for me, what makes her think I don’t want to do the same for her?”

Mira’s voice echoed as the shrouded tunnel unfurled into an expansive cavern, toothed stalactites protruding from the ceiling.

Intrigued by the sound of flowing water, Hiro walked to the cavern’s edge. A spectacle of crystal blue and amber lights unfolded before him. The edge dropped down steeply into a glowing body of water, rippling from the ethereal waterfall at the far side. Full of fireflies, the cavern was lit with a mystical, golden glow that reflected on the pristine waters. Shadows churned beneath the water's surface.

Leaning forward to get a better look, Hiro felt the ground slipping. He stepped back—too slow. The edge crumbled, succumbing to his weight. Hiro closed his eyes, bracing for the fall.

Then, a pull. Light and gentle, but just enough to help keep him from going over.

“It’s beautiful, isn’t it?” Mira said, snickering as Hiro collapsed to the ground in relief. “This is one of the last caves with clear water.”

“If I knew the Phoenix Cradle was this beautiful, I would’ve come here earlier,” Hiro said, hiding his embarrassment from almost becoming a wet fish.

“It isn’t all that great. The crater's steep walls are kinda claustrophobic. It makes you feel…trapped.”

“Really? I would’ve loved to grow up in a place like this.”

“And slowly watch it die as you grew up?”

“At least you saw it. I grew up moving from sector to sector in the Barrens. Nothing to see there. Nothing at all.”

“I’m…sorry to hear that.”

Mira’s words caused the cavern to fall into a sudden silence filled with only Hiro’s puffing of smoke.

“I-I was born here, so it’s all I've ever known. I’m kind of sick of it by now. What brought you here?” Mira asked, breaking the silence.

“I wanna get to the Summit. I’m sick of this smog and atmosphere, like everyone’s just sitting around waiting for the Scourge to take them. I just feel…”

“Stuck? Right?! Like being sick of seeing the same grey skies over and over. I get it. I really do. The feeling of just rotting away in the same place.”

“I wanna see the stars and actually breathe fresh air instead of this thick smog.” Hiro said, though what he imagined in his head wasn’t the Summit, it was something else.

Well, technically, I’m not lying. I just have some unfinished business to take care of first.

“That’s funny coming from you, purposely inhaling fumes to look cool, even though it’s killing you.”

“Tsk. It’s more than looking cool,” Hiro said, his ears tinting red. “what makes it cool is because you don’t care. You know that with each puff, your time is wavering. But isn’t that with everyone? Time is ticking for everyone.”

“Maybe it’s your way of coping. I want to get out of here someday, maybe to the Plezaar or any of the nearby countries. But aiming for the Summit. Seems a little bit of a stretch, don’t you think?”

“No. Not at all. That’s what they all say. That’s the kind of mentality keeping you trapped here. Don’t you see?”

Mira narrowed her glittering grey eyes. “There hasn’t been anyone that has made it from the underworld to the Summit in the past 500 years. What makes you think you can?”

Hiro breathed deeply, inhaling as much as his lungs would let him. “Well. I’ll either do it or I’ll die trying. If I make it, then great. If I don’t? Well…I’d be dead, so it wouldn’t be my problem anymore.”

“That’s the kind of mentality that gets you killed, you know.”

“Oh, really? We’ll see who ends up surviving.”

“Is that a challenge? I think your lungs will rot before then.” Mira said, her cheeky smile returning.

“And then it wouldn’t be my problem anymore. You, see? It’s perfect. Everything works out.”

“This guy is hopeless.” Mira whispered, quiet enough to be lost in the flow of the water.

“If you really do feel stuck, then why don’t you leave?”

"Leave? Where? How? And leave everyone behind?”

“If you always sit and wait for the perfect opportunity, your life will pass by and you’ll find yourself forever stuck in the same place. Sometimes you have to leave people behind who don’t have the same vision as you. To me, it looks like you're just accepting your situation and not doing anything about it.”