The night stretched overhead, a vast canvas of stars scattered across an ink-black sky. The cool breeze whispered through the trees, rustling the leaves with a deceptive gentleness, one that did nothing to settle the weight pressing down on Evolis' chest.
He and Aeliana walked in silence, their boots crunching softly against the forest floor. The distant glow of their campfire flickered ahead, a beacon in the darkness.
For once, neither of them had much to say.
Aeliana had been watching him the entire time, subtle but constant. She wasn't questioning him, she had already asked the important things earlier, already heard what he had to say. But Evolis could still feel her concern, unspoken but present, hanging between them like an unbroken thread.
He exhaled slowly, running a hand through his hair. "You don't have to keep looking at me like that, you know."
Aeliana arched a brow. "Like what?"
"Like I'm about to fall apart."
She huffed, shaking her head. "I wasn't going to say anything."
He shot her a dry look.
She sighed. "Fine. I just… I don't get it. You break through in your Plantae Affinity, and instead of celebrating, you look like you're carrying a mountain on your back."
Evolis let out a humorless chuckle. "Maybe because I am."
Aeliana didn't argue. Instead, she studied him, weighing her next words.
"It's about what that thing said, isn't it?"
Evolis didn't answer immediately. His steps slowed just slightly, his fingers flexing at his sides.
She wasn't asking if he believed it—she already knew he did. He had told her as much before.
But that didn't mean he understood it.
And that was what was bothering him the most.
But she was right.
The abomination's words had stuck to him like tar, thick and suffocating.
You should not be alive.You… who let it all burn.
The voice still crawled through his thoughts, a whispering echo in the back of his mind.
Aeliana, watching the shift in his expression, softened her voice. "Do you think it was telling the truth?"
Evolis inhaled sharply. "I don't know."
It was the only answer he had.
She didn't push him for more. She just nodded, walking beside him as the firelight grew closer.
The camp was quiet when they arrived.
Orion sat by the fire, leaning back against a log, his arms folded behind his head. His expression was unreadable, his usual easy smirk absent. His silver eyes flickered toward them as they entered the clearing.
Something was different.
Something was wrong.
Evolis felt it immediately, the shift in the air, the way Orion's gaze lingered on him just a little too long.
Like he was looking for something.
Like he was studying him.
Aeliana noticed it too. Her stance shifted subtly, shoulders straightening, fingers grazing the hilt of her sword in quiet reflex.
Orion didn't speak at first. He just watched them.
Then, finally, he exhaled, rubbing a hand down his face. "So. What's the verdict? You figure anything out?"
Evolis hesitated, then shook his head. "Not really."
Orion let out a slow, almost amused chuckle. "Yeah. Figured you'd say that."
Something about the tone set Evolis on edge.
There was something beneath Orion's words, something sharp.
Aeliana must have felt it too, because she crossed her arms. "Orion. What's your problem?"
"No problem," Orion said lightly, but his eyes flickered to Evolis again. "Just… curious."
Evolis' jaw tightened. "About what?"
Orion sat up slightly, stretching his legs out in front of him. "Oh, you know. Just wondering if there's anything else we should be worried about. Since, you know, apparently ancient corpse monsters recognize you."
Silence.
Aeliana's expression darkened.
Evolis felt something cold settle in his stomach.
So this was it. Orion had been holding back, biting his tongue since they left the ruins—but now, here it was.
The confrontation.
Evolis forced himself to keep his voice even. "You think I planned that?"
Orion shrugged. "No. But I do think you're holding back on us."
Aeliana stepped forward, her tone sharp. "Orion—"
Orion ignored her, eyes locked on Evolis. "It looked right at you, kid. It knew you. And I can't be the only one wondering why."
Evolis exhaled sharply, tension crawling up his spine. He wasn't surprised—of course Orion would push this. Of course he'd dig. It was who he was.
But Evolis wasn't in the mood for it.
His voice came out colder than he intended. "You don't know what I'm dealing with, so stop acting like I owe you every piece of my past."
Orion's smirk returned, but it didn't reach his eyes. "Oh? And you do? You don't even know what you might be dealing with, yet you're acting like we should just brush this off."
Evolis' fingers twitched. "I didn't ask for that thing to know me. You think I wanted this?"
Orion stood abruptly, shaking his head. "That's not the point, kid. The point is, we're out here, putting our necks on the line, and you're keeping secrets like they don't matter. Like we're not supposed to care."
A muscle in Evolis' jaw tightened. "And what exactly do you want me to say? That I might be someone I don't even remember? That I might have lived a life I don't know anything about?"
Orion's silver eyes darkened. "Yeah. That'd be a good start."
Evolis inhaled sharply, forcing down the anger rising in his chest. "What do you want from me, Orion? You think I have the answers? I don't. I'm just trying to figure this out."
Orion's lips pressed into a thin line. His hands curled into fists at his sides.
Then, suddenly, he let out a bitter laugh.
"Yeah. I get it," he muttered.
Evolis narrowed his eyes. "Do you?"
Orion's smirk dropped entirely.
For the first time since they'd met, he looked serious.
"You think you're the only one carrying something heavy?" Orion asked, voice quieter now. "You think you're the only one who's lost things?"
Evolis stared at him. There was something different in his tone now—something deeper.
Then Orion said it.
"Of course I know about struggle," he murmured. His voice wavered, just slightly. "My fam—"
He stopped.
The silence that followed was deafening.
Orion clenched his jaw. His shoulders were tight, his breath unsteady.
Aeliana's eyes widened slightly.
Evolis caught it immediately.
Orion never talked about his family.
Ever.
He had known the man long enough to notice that.
Evolis took a slow step forward, his anger from earlier fading. "Orion."
Orion exhaled sharply, running a hand through his hair. "You know what? It's fine. Forget I said anything."
Evolis didn't let it go. "No. You started this. So finish it."
Orion's silver eyes flickered to him, something unreadable in them.
For a long moment, it seemed like he wouldn't answer.
Then—
He sighed.
Orion leaned back against the boulder, arms folded, eyes fixed on the fire. He had been quiet since they returned, his usual carefree smirk missing, replaced with something heavier.
The silence between them stretched, tense, unspoken words thickening the air.
Then Orion exhaled, shaking his head, and spoke.
"Kid, do you wanna hear a story?"
Evolis raised a brow at him. "That depends. Is this one of your life lessons disguised as nonsense?"
Orion chuckled, but it was empty. "No, this one's real." He tossed a small twig into the fire, watching the embers flicker. His voice dropped slightly, lower than usual.
"Once… there was a little boy who had aspirations to become the greatest."
Evolis didn't interrupt. He knew Orion well enough by now to recognize when he was being serious. Aeliana turned slightly, listening, though she remained silent.
"This boy," Orion continued, voice quieter now, "was born into a family that wasn't powerful. They weren't nobles, they weren't warriors of legend. Just… simple people. Good people. His father was a craftsman, making weapons for men stronger than him. His mother? She wasn't a fighter either, but she had the kind of presence that made people listen when she spoke. And his little sister?" A ghost of a smile crossed his face. "She was the brightest damn thing in his life."
He let out a slow breath before continuing.
"But the boy didn't want to be like them. No, he had bigger dreams. He wanted power. Strength. He wanted to be someone who didn't have to bow to those stronger than him. Someone who could stand on his own."
His fingers curled slightly, tightening into a fist before he forced them to relax.
"So he chased it. Left home early, found teachers, learned how to fight, how to survive. And the stronger he got, the more he wanted. Because if he was strong enough, no one would ever be able to take away what was his."
Aeliana's expression shifted slightly. She already knew where this was going.
Evolis, listening intently, said nothing.
"But here's the thing about chasing power," Orion muttered. "You get so caught up in the climb that you don't see what you're leaving behind."
His jaw tightened.
"The boy wasn't there the night they came."
Evolis' stomach twisted. He didn't have to ask who they were.
Orion's voice remained steady, but it was the kind of steadiness that came from being so used to the pain that it no longer broke him.
"They were slaughtered." He said it plainly, without dramatics, without embellishment. "No one left to tell the tale. No one to tell him who had done it, or why. By the time he got back, there was nothing left of his family but ashes and memories."
Aeliana's jaw tightened as she thought about her mother. Her fists clenching as she thought about how lost her father's gaze looked when he told her, her mother was assassinated.
Silence.
Only the crackling of the fire remained.
For a long moment, Orion didn't speak. He just stared into the flames, eyes unreadable.
Evolis finally broke the silence. "And then what?"
Orion smirked, but it was hollow. "Then? He did what anyone would do. He looked for revenge. He tracked rumors, followed trails that led nowhere. Found ghosts where there should have been answers. Spent years looking for justice in a world that doesn't give a damn about justice."
He exhaled slowly, dragging a hand through his hair. "And at some point… I realized it didn't matter. Because even if I found the people responsible—even if I killed them all—" He shrugged, voice laced with something bitter. "They'd still be gone. And I'd still be alone."
Evolis watched him carefully. There was something different about this story—because it wasn't just a story.
It was his truth.
"So," Orion leaned back, tilting his head toward Evolis. "Now you know why I don't like secrets. Why I don't like people keeping things locked up inside, like it won't come back to bite them later."
Evolis exhaled. "You think I'm making the same mistake."
"I think," Orion said, his voice quieter now, "that you're at a crossroads. And you need to find your purpose—but not at the cost of the people who matter to you."
His gaze was steady, sharper than usual, cutting through Evolis in a way that made it impossible to ignore.
"I don't know what you were running from back then. Maybe it was duty. Maybe it was fate. Maybe it was just something you didn't want to be. But here's the thing, kid—running only gets you so far. Sooner or later, whatever you're trying to escape catches up. And when it does?" He shook his head. "The only thing that'll matter is who you have left standing beside you."
Orion exhaled slowly, staring into the fire.
"You can chase power, chase answers, chase your past if you want to. But if you lose yourself in it—if you let it turn you into someone who forgets what's important—then by the time you look back, you won't just be running from your past."
His silver eyes flickered with something unreadable.
"You'll be running from everything else, too."
He let the words settle, let the fire crackle between them, before adding, "At the end of the day, when you look back on your life, the question isn't whether you found your purpose."
He met Evolis' gaze.
"It's whether you still have something left to fight for."
The words settled over Evolis like a weight.
For once, he had nothing to say.
Orion wasn't just some wandering mercenary.
He was a man running from something.
From regret.
From guilt.
For a long moment, none of them spoke.
Then Orion let out another breath, shaking his head. "So yeah, kid. I know what it's like to have something you don't want to talk about."
Evolis met his gaze, searching it.
The tension in his chest loosened, just slightly.
The fire flickered between them, casting shadows that stretched and faded, never truly vanishing. Evolis flexed his fingers, feeling the warmth of the flames against his skin. Purpose. People. He wasn't sure what his past had stolen from him, but he knew what he had now. And Orion was right—if he wasn't careful, he'd lose that too.
"I get it," Evolis finally said.
Orion held his stare for a second longer—then nodded, dropping back onto the log by the fire.
Aeliana sighed, rubbing her temples. "You two are idiots."
Evolis smirked faintly. "Probably."
Orion snorted. "Yeah. But at least now we're idiots who aren't about to kill each other."
The fire crackled.
The silence wasn't as heavy anymore.
And for the first time in hours, Evolis felt like he could breathe