Bacorium Legacy

  Chapter XIX

  Things that Lurk in the Dark

  The group of seven travelled away from T'Saw until the city and the mountain it was built into had disappeared under the horizon, and the sun of the morning had rose up to take it's place. They travelled to the south-west, in the direction of a small town called Eccador, where Luca hoped he might find a Rixeor Fragment he could use. Once the sun was above the horizon, they stopped to rest.

  Luca recounted to the others his secret meeting with Gordon, and the things the Acarian had told him, this time sparing no details. He told them first of Gordon's story; of his encounters with Lodin on the last night of the Acarian War. He told them of Zinoro's dark pact with the demon Ekkei for power, and of his obsession with vengeance. And finally, he told them of the revenants Zinoro made from the blood of the dead. They reacted to it much as he expected them to.

  "Inhuman..." Brand muttered.

  "This explains how he has built his army," Selphie said in a quiet voice. "As well as the reasoning behind the attacks against the small villages on the borders... easy targets to build up his numbers."

  "Gordon said as much," Luca confirmed.

  Selphie had a look in her eyes Luca had never seen before. "Zinoro has no soul. He's a monster... no human being could do such a thing. He cannot be allowed to get away with this. Those innocent people..."

  "Selphie, remember the mission," Jared urged her.

  "I have not forgotten it. Preventing war is still our mission. All the more now that we have this knowledge. An open battle with Zinoro would only make things all the worse... we would just be sending people to their deaths, and increasing the number of Zinoro's troops. But I will not allow him to get away with what he has done! That monster! To think, I nearly-!"

  Jared placed his hand on Selphie's and she stopped herself from saying anymore. They exchanged glances, and something unspoken was said between them. With anger and frustration in her eyes, Selphie rested her head against Jared's hand.

  "Ekkei?" Wiosna asked slowly, turning to Luca. He nodded, and she said, "Do you really believe this, Luca?"

  He thought about it. "I don't know if Zinoro really spoke with Ekkei in that shrine or not. All I have is Gordon's word to trust, but he certainly seems to believe that that is where Zinoro attained his unnatural abilities. I've seen Zinoro with my own eyes, and there is definitely some kind of dark, alien corruption to his mana. I've felt it." His finger caressed the scar across his cheek.

  After a moment's pause, he added, "I do not personally believe in the Old Ones. My father did, but it was one of many things we never agreed on."

  "I do not believe in Ekkei or any of the Old Ones," Wiosna said with disgust. "Zinoro might have decided to make such a claim to rally followers to his side, but whatever he found in that shrine, it was certainly not a god."

  "I doubt any of us believe in them," Brand said. "But until we know for sure, let's keep an open mind."

  "Regardless of whether Ekkei exists or not, or if he is the source of Zinoro's power, it doesn't change one simple fact," Luca said. "Zinoro has a Rixeor Fragment, and unless we have one of our own, we have no way to match him. That's why we're going to Eccador."

  "There's a Rixeor Fragment in Eccador?" Brand asked.

  "Perhaps. There have been rumours, but we don't know anything for certain yet."

  Luca noticed Emila had cast her eyes on the ground, hiding an expression of pain and unease. He knew why; the Acarians were still her greatest fear, and the conversation had been a reminder that they were on their way to the front door of Acaria.

  He took her hand in his own and gave it a gentle squeeze. Emila looked up and met his gaze, and he gave her a reassuring smile. After a moment, she returned it, but there was still an echo of pain in her eyes.

  Luca looked over to Selphie and saw that she too was troubled, though the look in her eyes was one of disgust. Jared spoke softly to her, and she hesitantly nodded in agreement to whatever it was he was saying.

  "We should get moving," Luca said. "It's a long way to Eccador, and we have little time to spare if we're going to make it to the Elder Hall."

 

  After another two hours' worth of travel, they came across a pair of weary-looking travellers, dressed in dirty rags.

  "On your way to Eccador?" One of the travellers asked.

  Selphie answered. "Our business is our own."

  "Aye. Just wondering, though," The traveller scratched his beard awkwardly, a bit put-off by the secrecy. "We just came from Eccador. A lot of people have been going there to see the sword in the stone."

  Luca stepped up and asked about the sword.

  "They say it's a Rixeor Fragment," the traveller told him. "Someone stuck it in a boulder at the edge of town and left it there. Nobody can take it out, because it burns anyone who touches it."

  That's undoubtedly a Rixeor Fragment, Luca thought.

  "Does anyone have any idea who put the sword there?" he asked.

  "It's a mystery," the traveller said. "Who knows who put that sword there, or why they even would in the first place? I know if I had a Rixeor Fragment I certainly wouldn't be leaving it lying around."

  "If it's a Rixeor Fragment, it doesn't matter," Brand said. "As you said, nobody is able to touch it without burning themselves. There would be no need to fear of someone taking it."

  The man spaced out for a second, then he blinked a few times and laughed. "You're right. I guess I did say that."

  Luca glanced at the other traveller, who had so far not said a single word. The other man was even more haggard looking than the first, with a longer beard and sunken cheeks. He simply stared off longingly into the distance, his mind somewhere else.

  Something about these two was wrong. Their behaviour was odd. They both looked physically exhausted, dirty and unshaven. Though neither of them quite acted tired; more like spaced out and absent-minded.

  "Well, we'd best get going," Luca muttered, wanting to get away from the two of them as quickly as he could.

  "Indeed, we have a job to do as well," said the bearded traveller. "Farewell."

  Luca's group and the two travellers started to walk in separate directions, but they had not taken ten steps before the traveller exclaimed something and rushed back to them.

  "There's something I forgot to tell you," he said, his eyes wide. "There's also been sightings of vampires in southern Sono."

  "Vampires?" Luca repeated, remembering the encounter he'd had with one back in Forga. "How organised are they?"

  The man's brow tightened in concentration, like he was having great difficulty remembering what he wanted to say. "I... I can't say. They seem to be gathering, from what I've heard. But things are still pretty calm. They're no farther north than Lysander."

  "I see..." Luca muttered. He glanced at Selphie, whose eyes were narrowed in suspicion.

  "Just... something to keep in mind," the traveller said oddly. "Be careful on your way to Eccador..."

  He left, this time for real. Luca watched as the two travellers disappeared over the hill, wondering what the cause of their odd behaviour was.

  "What could vampires possibly be organising for?" the princess wondered aloud.

  "Have they ever organised before in these parts?" Luca asked her. His father had told him about vampires a few times on their travels, and from what he knew, they always remained underground in small groups. Vampires were extremely dangerous monsters, especially in groups. They were fast, strong, and resistant to every mana form save for fire. Their ability to hypnotise in particular was especially dangerous; with a glance and a few words, a vampire could turn the steadiest of fighters into a willing victim.

  But their vulnerability to fire - the most commonly found mana form - made it difficult for them to gather in very large numbers. A skilled fire-form magus could handle a dozen vampires on his own.

  At least, that was what Lodin had told him.

  "There have been a few minor groups that have gathere
d in the past," Selphie replied. "They never made it far, however. A vampire on its own is dangerous, but in groups, they become easier to notice. And easier to wipe out. Not to mention all the infighting... really, it's hard to believe that such dangerous creatures are such a minor threat."

  "We should let the king know," Brand suggested. "The sooner action is taken on this, the better."

  "He's got enough on his plate as it is," Selphie said. "I'll write to my brother. He'll be the acting king while my father is at the Elder Hall. He can organise an effort to deal with this."

 

  Selphie was unlike her usual self, keeping quiet most of the day and saying little. Her visible mood alternated between anger and sullenness. Luca, who walked at the front of the group with Emila, glanced back at her from time to time and happened to see her speaking quietly with Jared. On noticing Luca's staring, Selphie would stop talking.

  As the day went on, Luca found himself making decisions for the group after waiting too long for Selphie to do so. Selphie usually decided when to stop to eat, which roads to take, and other things like that. But today she was either forgetting or simply didn't care enough. And as no one else seemed to want to, Luca found it was he who had to step up and take responsibility.

  So he took the group and found a good spot at the edge of a large forest, just off the road. They were hidden by a hill, but still close enough that whoever was on watch could keep an eye on the path.

  They erected their three tents, unpacked, and started up a fire. Everyone found their usual spots and they had a light dinner with little conversation.

  Every now and then, Luca would glance over at Selphie. She refused to meet his gaze. Something was definitely wrong. When he had the opportunity, he would have to approach her and ask her what was on her mind.

  The atmosphere was subdued in a way that was bothering Luca. He needed to do something to lighten things up.

  "Emila," Luca said suddenly, turning to the girl beside him. "You should play a song for us."

  Her eyes widened. "Wh-what?"

  "On your lute."

  Emila stared at him like he'd just murdered a child. "How do you about that?"

  "Because-" he nearly mentioned that the innkeeper from T'Saw who had told her all those things she had kept from him, but he remembered that he wasn't supposed to know about that. "I've... seen it among your belongings a few times by chance. I just assumed..." He trailed off. It was a lie, at least partly, which telling to her made his stomach turn, but he couldn't tell her how he knew those things, especially not in front of the others.

  He remembered that Emila had told him she could have made extra money by playing to patrons, but she never did. Clearly, it was something she was uncomfortable with. Luca silently cursed his foolish mistake.

  "I... I'm actually not very good at it," Emila said, brushing a strand of hair behind her ear and looking away from him. "It would not be pleasant to hear."

  Luca knew that was also a lie, but he kept his silence. How many things did they really keep from each other, he wondered.

  The uncomfortable silence returned to the group, and they stared at the fire without a word spoken. Luca bit his lip, realising he'd actually made things worse with his thoughtless suggestion. Several long minutes passed in this purgatory.

  "Hey... where's Wiosna?" Brand asked suddenly, breaking the silence like a rock thrown through glass.

  They looked around. Wiosna was nowhere to be seen. She did not sit by the fire, nor was she in any of the tents.

  "Where did she go?" Selphie asked. "She was right here just a minute ago..."

  A chill ran down Luca's back. "Look for her."

  They split up a bit and searched the immediate area. After a few minutes, they regrouped. Nobody had seen the blond-haired girl anywhere.

  "There's only one place she could have gone..." Jared muttered, glancing off to the forest in the distance.

  "But why would she go there?" Emila asked.

  "We'll know soon enough," Luca said, starting off in the direction of the forest. Without hesitation, Emila and Brand followed after him. Selphie and Jared exchanged glances, and Selphie looked like she wanted to say something, but she kept silent and they both followed as well. As usual, Ash lingered in the back.

  The group hastily made their way into the woods. The trees were close together, and the foliage thick. It wasn't long before what little sun remained was cut off from them. Still, Luca looked carefully, and it wasn't long before he spotted what he was looking for.

  "She's been here," he said, pointing to the ground. There, in the dirt, was a set of footprints vaguely in the shape of travel boots such as the ones Wiosna wore.

  "Maybe we should call for her," Emila suggested.

  "No," Luca said. "We need to keep quiet."

  Emila peered into the depths of the forest and then saw what Luca saw. The peerless darkness within. There was no light in these woods.

  "In dark places like these, monsters are always hiding somewhere," he said in a quiet voice. He commanded them, "Follow me closely. Be as quiet as you can, and no matter what you do, do not separate from the group."

  He saw Emila nod, and she followed behind him, with the others four just behind her. The only sounds they heard as they made their way through the woods was the snapping of twigs beneath their feet, and the occasional rustle of leaves when the wind blew. Luca's eyes were sharp, and he kept his hand tight around the hilt of Siora. He watched the darkness closely, able to make out only the vague shape of the ground and the trees. He did not look for that, however. He was looking for movement.

  The ground beneath them began to slope upwards, and Luca followed the occasional footprint up. He had done this many times, out on hunts with his father. He had no doubt that these were Wiosna's footprints he was following; what he didn't know was why she had gone so deep into this dark forest on her own. That worried him, and he feared the worst.

  He stopped just at the top of the hill, and the others stopped with him. He slowly peered over the edge, and into the spacious valley below, well-lit by the moonlight shining through a gap in the previously impenetrable foliage. At the centre of the valley was a dilapidated shrine, the entrance of which had crumbled away long ago, sealing whatever secrets lie inside. But that wasn't what caught his attention. Before the ruined entrance was a stone slab, upon which two figures could be seen.

  One was a pale-skinned man with jet-black hair and eyes as red as blood. It was clear enough what he was; Luca had slain one in Forga some time ago.

  Wiosna sat upon the slab, staring off into space and making no move to escape from her captive. The vampire sat before her, his face close to hers. He was not drinking her blood, thankfully. He seemed to be speaking to her.

  "Vampire," Luca said to the others quietly.

  He heard a sharp intake of breath, but he did not know who it came from.

  "It's trying to turn her into it's thrall," Brand muttered. "We cannot waste any time."

  "Indeed," Luca replied. "But we must be careful." He looked over the group. There were six of them, including himself. "Alright, here's what we'll do. Three of us will circle around the hill and approach them from behind. The other three will attack up front, drawing the vampire's attention. The three in the back will get Wiosna away, and once certain that she's safe, return and help in the fight. Six of us should be able to handle one vampire."

  "A solid plan," Jared said. "Who will make up each group?"

  "Emila and Ash are not fighters, so they will be in the back group," Luca said. "Jared, you will go with them because you're the best at defencive abilities. They might need the protection if something goes wrong. Brand will lead the attack on the front, because his fire magick is the thing vampires are most vulnerable to. Selphie and I will support him."

  Luca looked to Selphie for a moment, an unspoken question in the air. Can I trust you to do this? She met his gaze for a second, then looked away. Her expression said nothing.

  "I
think I should be with the princess..." Jared began quietly.

  "She'll be fine without you this once," Luca told him. "Go on. We don't have much time. Remember, your priority is getting Wiosna away from the vampire. We cannot let it bite her."

  Because if it bit her, Wiosna was gone forever.

  Jared and Ash started off, moving carefully down the hill to double back and circle around. Emila looked to Luca for a moment. "Be careful," she said to him.

  He gave her a reassuring nod, and she left.

  "Those guys on the road warned us about vampires, but I didn't think we would actually see one," Brand said. "What do you make of this?"

  "It's hypnotising her," Luca pointed out. "It hasn't bit her, thank goodness, but who knows what kind of commands it's putting in her mind? That's why we can't afford to waste time."

  "This might have been planned ahead of time," Selphie spoke up. "When I write to my brother, I'll have to be convincing."

  Luca turned back to the valley. At the bottom, he saw the vampire move its lips to Wiosna's neck. For a moment, he feared it was about to bite her. But when the vampire moved his lips away from Wiosna's neck, there was no blood. It was a kiss. Wiosna was smiling, though her eyes were still heavy and dazed. The vampire kissed Wiosna again, this time on the lips, and guided her down to a lying position. His hands roamed over her body, travelling from her inner thigh up to her breasts.

  "The others are ready," Brand pointed out.

  Luca's expression was an angry scowl. "Let's go."

  The three of them drew their weapons and made their way down into the valley, moving from tree to tree and keeping hidden from the vampire. At last, when they were no more than twenty metres from the stone slab, Luca looked across to Brand, who was hidden behind another tree, and nodded.

  Brand sprang from the tree, charging at the vampire. However, the creature seemed to be expecting the attack, as he immediately leaped from atop the slab and hissed at Brand with a twisted expression on his face. Brand was thrown off his momentum, unable to swing his scimitar. It was all he could do to stop running and keep from stumbling into reach of the vampire's sharp claws.

  "Fresh meat," the vampire said aloud.

  At those words, the collapsed entrance of the shrine broke apart, the glow of earth-form mana filling the air. Two men emerged from within the shrine, the very same travellers that Luca and Selphie had spoken to earlier in the day. Their eyes were glazed over much the same as Wiosna's.

  "Kill them!" the vampire commanded.

  The thralls each drew a dagger from their belts and ran past the vampire towards Brand.

  "Magick!" Luca shouted, stepping out from behind the tree and rushing past Brand to meet the thralls' attack. On his side was the second of the travellers, the one who had never spoken. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Selphie intercepting the other.

  The thrall met his attack, blocking Siora with his dagger. There was surprising strength behind the parry, and when the thrall pushed back, Luca found himself stumble backwards. He felt his foot hit something, and there was a moment of panic as he realised what it was. He tripped over the tree root, and fell backwards.

  Luca did not hit the ground, however. He fell back, collapsing into something that caught his fall and held him in the air. When he tried to rise from it, he found he was stuck fast. He twisted around, only getting his feet and left hand wrapped up in the sticky wires that held him.

  He heard something above him. Unable to focus on the combat going on between the vampire, his thralls, and the others, Luca looked up and saw the creature whose web he had so easily fallen into. The arachne climbed slowly down the tree, its many eyes black and round. Its mandibles opened in anticipation of its meal.

  Thankfully, Luca's right hand was not caught in the web. Unfortunately, his sword was not in it. It had fallen on the ground when he tripped, and it now rested some distance away from him, just out of reach.

  The arachne was moving towards him too fast for him to use magick to fight it off. Luca twisted his body in the web, reaching for the sword. He strained and reached as far as he could, but not even the tips of his fingers could brush against the hilt of his blade.

  "Damn..."

  The arachne was getting closer now. In seconds it would be upon him.

  Still, the sword was too far away. He heaved himself with as much strength as his body could muster, but all it accomplished was getting him even more tangled up in the web. He began to feel the tips of the giant spider's legs brushing against his shoulders.

  "Come on...!" Luca reached out with all the strength he could muster.

  It was no enough. He felt the arachne's fangs dip into his shoulder, and with it pain and venom. Immediately, he could feel his body growing stiff and rigid. An artificial rigour mortis. He would become paralysed, then wrapped up in a cocoon from which there was no escape. Then the arachne would lay eggs inside his body, and in a day or so when they hatched, the baby spiders would feast on him from the inside out. And he would be alive and awake through it all.

  But then, he felt Siora in his grasp. He couldn't explain how, but he had somehow managed to reach it, even while being bitten by the arachne's poisoned fangs.

  He thrust the blade forward, driving it deep into the giant spider above him. The horrid thing shrieked in pain, and tried to squirm away from its former prey. But the tables had turned, and Luca had the fangs now. He pulled Siora out, and under the moonlight, the blade seemed almost to glow white. He stabbed the arachne again, and again, and again, until the thing moved no more. Then he cut himself free as well as he could with his body growing harder to move. Webbing still covered his arms and legs, but he was able to get up and see what was happening.

  One of the thralls was killed, with only a bloody stain on a tree trunk remaining. The other was wounded, his guts all but spilling out of his stomach as he tried to crawl away. He wouldn't make it, though; that wound was fatal. Luca wasn't sure which of the travellers had been slain and which was dying, but he didn't dwell on it.

  He then looked over to the others. The vampire was still fighting off the others, and three arachne had since appeared to help him, two of which were bloody corpses. Jared was fighting the third with Ash, while Brand and Selphie were fighting the vampire. Wiosna was still in a trance.

  Emila was nowhere to be seen.

  "Emila..." Luca gasped, finding it difficult to speak. He could feel the arachne's venom in his veins. He had killed it before it could deliver the full dose, but it was still making his limbs feel like lead, and his head light. "I have to... find her..."

  Luca stumbled off into the woods alone, and the others were too busy with their own enemies to see him.

 

  Luca finally found Emila.

  She was lying against a tree in a clearing. It was a place unlike anything else in the forest. A small stream ran around the area in a perfect circle. The moonlight shined through, illuminating the scene perfectly. The tree was alive in a way that nothing else in the forest was, its leaves a perfect gold like those of autumn.

  Emila wasn't alone.

  Her head was lying in the arms of a vampire. A female vampire, who was unearthly beautiful. Her hair was black as deepest midnight, and flowed down past her waist. Her eyes and lips, red as a rose in bloom, her skin a milky alabaster.

  Luca could not keep the breath from catching in his throat, or his heart from racing like it was aflame. He had never seen such beauty in any being before.

  But even through this dream he was able to remember why he had come. He saw Emila, and knew what was happening. Emila's eyes were heavy-lidded and hazy, her expression peaceful, and her breathing slow.

  "L-let her go..." he managed to say. His hand tightened on his sword, which felt so heavy to his poisoned body. He knew he couldn't possibly fight this vampire, not after he'd been bit by the arachne. It was all he could do just to keep on his feet.

  The beautiful vampire lowered her head and whispered something in Emila
's ear. Emila's eyes closed, her lips curled into a peaceful smile. The vampire then rose, and looked up at Luca.

  "It's okay," she said to him. Her voice was just as beautiful as she was. It flowed like clear water in a stream. "I won't hurt you."

  Luca's gaze was drawn to her eyes. Though red as blood, they seemed clearer and deeper than the eyes of anyone else he had ever seen. He found himself unable to look away.

  "You have nothing to fear from me," she said softly. "I'm not like the others. Please, let go of your sword. It frightens me."

  The thought of doing something that frightened her seemed awful to him. She was such a delicate, fragile thing... Though he really wanted to throw his sword away, he knew that he needed it to protect himself.

  But from what? There were no enemies there. There was only himself, the peacefully-sleeping Emila, and the beautiful girl before him. Faintly, he heard the sound of his sword hitting the ground.

  The girl smiled sweetly and moved close to him. He could feel his heart beating so hard he thought it would burst from his chest. She placed her hand on his arm, caressing it gently and moving up to his shoulder. The very touch of her hand sent electric waves tingling through him. She moved a little closer, and he could smell her now. She carried the scent of flowers. It was intoxicating, and made his head spin.

  "It's okay, just look at me," she said to him. "Just look into my eyes."

  He did so, and found it so easy to just get lost in those eyes. She was so close to him now, he could feel her gentle breathing tickle his chest. Her arms were around his neck. She drew closer, and Luca's heart was pounding like a drum as he knew what was about to happen.

  Her lips touched his, and he shuddered with pleasure. His knees gave out, and it was up to her to keep him standing, which she did with surprising strength. Gently she lowered him down until he was lying on the ground, and she softly caressed his head, lulling him into a state of relaxation. He felt her lips beside his ear, and he heard her say a single word before everything went black.

  "Sleep."

 

  Luca slowly returned to consciousness, realising that someone was shaking him insistently. As he looked up, his hazy eyes made out the shape of Brand, whose expression of concern shifted to relief at the sign of life.

  Like waking after a long night of drinking, it took a while for Luca to sit up and gather himself. Gradually, his vision focused and his head stopped spinning. He saw Emila undergoing a similar process underneath her tree, with Selphie helping her.

  "What happened?" Brand asked him.

  "There was... another vampire," Luca muttered. He remembered coming across Emila and the other vampire, but after that his memories became foggy.

  "The other vampire hypnotised you both?" Brand asked.

  "No..." Luca said. "I was bit by an arachne earlier." Luca pulled up his sleeve and showed Brand the swollen bite mark on his shoulder. "I, uh... I fought the vampire off and then passed out from the venom."

  The memories were vague, but Luca was sure that was what had happened.

  Luca looked up and saw Wiosna leaning against a tree, looking tired but otherwise alright. "Is she alright?" he asked.

  "Yeah, she's fine," Brand said. "After we killed the vampire, we tended to her. She was a little confused and disoriented, but there doesn't appear to be any permanent effects."

  Indeed, that was the true worry when one was dealing with vampires. Like those two travellers whose strange behaviour now made so much more sense. If one was hypnotised by a vampire long enough, they could have permanent triggers left behind in their mind that changed who they were. Thankfully, neither Wiosna nor Emila had been under long enough for that.

  Not a lot was known about vampire hypnosis, or vampires in general. Finding subjects to study wasn't exactly an easy task.

  "Those travellers from before were that vampire's thralls," Luca said. "That guy warned us about vampires in the area..."

  "An odd thing to do if he was working for one," Brand said.

  "I think... he really was trying to save us. But he couldn't, because his mind had been hypnotised so much it was fried. He tried to warn us through a loophole."

  Luca looked over to Emila, who was groggily trying to stand, and blessed the gods he did not believe in that such a fate had not befallen her. For now it was twice that he had saved her from a vampire.

 

  By the time they were all recovered, it was well into the night. They went back to the camp and immediately retired for the night. Jared took the first watch, as he always did.

  In the tent he shared with Emila, Luca lied on his back, and looked over at her. She was sitting quietly, staring at the ground.

  "Luca..." she said softly. "How did you really find out about the lute?"

  He sat up. "What?"

  "It's impossible that you could have seen it by chance, because I keep it wrapped in paper. I haven't unwrapped it since before I met you. So how did you really find out about it? Did you go through my things?"

  She looked over at him, anger in her eyes.

  "I didn't," Luca said. "I wouldn't do that. I..." he sighed, and said, "Trent told me about the elderly couple you came to T'Saw with. He told me about what happened to them."

  Emila looked surprised for a moment, then her expression softened. She bit her lip and looked away and sighed. "I'm sorry," she said.

  "Why are you apologising?"

  "Because you should have heard that story from me," she said, her voice tinged with regret. "I... I shouldn't keep so many things from you."

  Luca smiled and took her hand in his. "It's okay. Like I told you back in Allma Temple, you don't need to feel pressured to tell me these things. Not until you're ready."

  She returned her gaze to him ever so slowly, and in that moment, Luca knew there was something very important she was considering to tell him. A few times, her lips moved as though she were about to speak, but she trembled and could not bring herself to do it. Eventually, she pulled her hand from his and cast her gaze away yet again, the confession unsaid.

  "When you're ready," Luca reaffirmed.

  He leaned over and kissed her neck tenderly, and then he returned to his roll and lay down to sleep. A moment or so later, Emila did the same.

  Though they were right next to one another, and their very souls were connected, Luca couldn't help but feel like they had never been further apart.