Awakened

They all rushed back towards Ayuri; they seemed to be in good spirits. No one got injured, luckily as well.

“How did you get her powers?” Hiwo asked.

Ayuri flickers at the question before responding, “She entrusted her weapon to me; it's not my power.”

They all nod knowingly now.

Toki, without wasting any time, decides to rush over to the tent where Kazu and Mio reside before getting firmly grabbed by Ayuri.

“They don't want anyone else to enter,” her grasp lingering just a bit more than needed.

Hiwo lets out a sigh. “Let's get our stuff and leave then; let them have their last moment.”

They all agree to get to work on picking up their supplies. They took all the bandages and supplies they needed. Before settling down to rest, they chatted about the things that occurred that day.

The sky started to return to its darkened expression, the sun and moon separating themselves from each other before leaving the moon hanging in the sky; the end of the eclipse was among them.

Peace spread throughout the group resting before hearing a sombre melody play out; each note carried a pain of sadness, each high note reaching a tearing drop soon after, while the low notes represented the mourning of everyone before.

“Put on your headphones,” Toki calls out, reminding them of Kazu's influence and power.

They each put on their headphones, but Ayuri, however, decided to listen.

“You're going to start crying if you let it in, you know?” Toki called out.

"That's fine," her voice was firm.

Shina stood up suddenly. She was getting tired of the sentimental times, starting her journey back to their original camp.

Nobody tried to stop her; there was no reason to, considering the event was over, and it was pretty much safe to go anywhere now.

Hiwo glared at her; it was odd considering she did nothing wrong, but she gave a knowing smirk back.

He grabs Ayuri gently; her cheeks were already red from the power's influence, causing her to cry uncontrollably.

"Let's go," he gestures over to Hiwo, still sitting down, just not wanting to move just yet; however, he doesn't protest.

Standing up, the three of them walk over slowly towards the forest. Ayuri was almost breaking down from the melody in the background. The influence must be shredding her, yet however many times Toki tries to put the headphones on her, She refused.

Hiwo towards the back of them lets them go first; he didn’t bother trying to speed the group up. He was tired from the fighting earlier. The feeble moonlight caused the forest to seem just as dark as the void.

They enter one by one. Hiwo, however, stops for a moment, his eyes glaring down towards the camp. A figure was running towards it.

From a distance, it was impossible to tell who it was; the human figure ran silently, avoiding any suspicion and under the shade of the moonlight.

As the figure went into the camp, the melody suddenly died out, the saddened atmosphere ending its relentless attack. Ayuri also started to stop crying from the sudden stop.

Hiwo lets out an annoyed sigh.

That's the path you've chosen, it seems; ending it won't cause me any pain then. That's good to know.

He turns around back towards Ayuri and Toki, who look towards him, surprised that he was gazing back at the camp, frozen so suddenly.

Noticing their gaze, he looks over, taking off his headphones, seeing that Ayuri stopped crying, “I was just reminiscing about the day we had; let's continue.”

They give a nod before heading into the thick forest; the figure in the distance seems to have disappeared into the night's embrace.

Their journey back was peaceful; the forest had no eyes staring at them. They sometimes passed by destroyed foliage, which would remind them of what had happened, but knowing it was over was plenty more than the past.

After their two hours of walking, they saw their old camp perfectly in shape. There was no reason for anyone to come here, especially during the event, and the creatures, seeing nothing worth destroying, had no reason to come over there.

Entering the camp's premises, they saw Shina already in her tent. “Took you long enough.”

Toki looked at her in a slightly condescending way. “It wasn’t a competition, so don't make it one. You definitely just ran over the whole forest.”

“I did,” she had a matter-of-fact tone within her.

Hiwo glared down at her, noticing the slightly exhausted face on her. “You seem tired, so you must have run.”

His glare stayed just a bit longer than needed.

They unpack all their supplies, putting the camp back to its original style, making it as if they never left. With tired bodies slumping around, they all entered their tents, locking them up for the night.

Toki lay down within his tent, looking upwards. The side of his wound didn't, of course, have Mio's guardian, but it didn't seem to open anymore; it was practically healed, like her threads had an effect.

“Ayuri is pretty cool; that power of hers will be super useful.” He glanced towards Hiwo.

Turning to face him, he speaks, “We were lucky that we met such a good group of people; it's still rather sad that they died.”

“Kazu is still alive; it was only Mio.” He gave a confused expression.

Hiwo feigned a smile. "You're right. Let's rest well for today; tomorrow will be even worse, I assume.”

“Don't say it like that… or it might actually happen,” Toki sighed.

“Sorry, let’s just get some rest tonight.” Hiwo turned over to the other side. Toki followed his lead, turning to his side too. They are both trying to rest.

In the other tent. There was a silence. They had many things to ask. Was it about the goddess? Her newfound power or the way Shina has been behaving in the last couple of hours. They didn't know but left it, knowing that neither wanted to talk.