"Grummmbbble." The knot in his stomach was still there. But a hungry growl had long replaced it.

Sat on the steps, lost in thought, his gaze wandered. The cold, stone seat beneath had begun to ache. The steps were almost identical to those outside Hector's home. However, they were not his. It was all he could do to hope their owner didn't suddenly open their door, whoever they were.

'That's right. I don't have anywhere to sleep tonight.'

For the first time, he was glad to be here. The Defected had been kind enough not to bother him. Even now, every last one had something more pressing to do. Some duty, some friends, some lover. This peace would not have lasted had he been back at school.

Whilst he sat, the sky slowly swept over the camp, shrouding all with vain darkness. 'That's enough of that. I guess I might as well go early' The solid, flat stone seat had grown too uncomfortable. With all the time in the world, he stood and walked with a faint numbness in his legs and a hungry pang in his gut.

The camp was alive. Even at night, there seemed to be no strict curfew or anything of the sort. He'd watched the inhabitants roam between buildings, visit each other, and even venture outside the camp. This chaotic freedom felt similar to how his school had been.

However, the inhabitants themselves were not so similar. He discerned there was an undeniable maturity in most of the Defected. Even outside of the unique abnormalities on their bodies, they were completely different from how the students at his school had behaved. 'But they were students once too. This world changed them and for the better.'

Dragged from his thoughts, he noticed the one beacon that stood proudly above the rest in the dim darkness of the camp. As he passed by, he spared it a reluctant glance. He couldn't think of anything worse than what lay within the largest birch building. The rambunctious jeers and blaring shrills within made him stop in his tracks. 'Tonight, they're even worse.'

It wasn't that long until he'd traversed the full length of the camp.

It had been a nice change of pace. The fresh scent of flowers and earthy grass mixed nicely with the silence. And not one familiar face had appeared. Not until now, at least.

There she was. She looked the same as the day before and remained in the exact same place. Her clothes were the same too. A thin blue blouse was all that protected her from the night's creeping chill. A simple, royal blue skirt fell to her knees as her legs were hidden and hung over the other side of the wall.

He approached her from behind, but she was unaware of his presence. Her gaze was lost to the night sky as it had been yesterday. Close enough now, he kept his voice low as he murmured, "Um, you told me to come back today?"

Startled, she twisted around as a hand reached for her chest, and her breath hitched. "Hahh, you startled me." After a short cough, she smiled.

"I sent Hector to look for you, so I didn't expect..."

Her smile was gentle, but her breathing wasn't so. She turned away, quickly glancing at the forest edge again.

"Well, you're here now. Thank you."

Scratching his head, Rowan said, "Well, it's not like I had much else to do..." He paused, studying her face and those faint blue eyes of hers. "Shouldn't you. Shouldn't you have known I was coming?"

"Ah." She chuckled. "Yes, the others make that mistake often. But no, I didn't know you were coming. It was Alicia who told you about my ability, wasn't it? I think I heard her say something like that."

Her gentle blue eyes winced close as she crossed her legs. "Yes, I remember your conversation now. Alicia, she's quite... honest, unlike me." Noticing the uncertainty in his figure, she smiled and gestured towards him. Understanding her meaning, he approached sceptically, climbed on the frail stone wall, and sat beside her.

"But no, I didn't know you were coming, Rowan. You see. My visions. They don't include me." Rowan blinked as he listened. A reasonable distance remained between them as they sat.

"What I do and how I'm involved. I don't get to see those things in my visions. They're not a part of that future." She said.

Her deep blue eyes glimmered with darkness as she gazed down at her feet. "I never know my own fate. I'm clueless about my role in the visions. Is that person mad because of me? Did my decision get that person hurt? Did I let that person die?"

Rowan awaited her words in silence. The frightened look in those blue pupils had convinced him to listen, the nervous kick of her legs and the pained sound of her voice. It was all familiar.

"However, that's what makes my ability useful. They permit me to hear what will happen to everyone else and then change that outcome."

That vague sensation of familiarity didn't last. As the girl finished, that knot in his stomach returned and ate away at him inside. He shuffled on his rough stone seat while she kicked her legs gently.

She whispered. "Only I can alter and change what will occur. It isn't much, but even I can help everyone in this small way."

She smiled at Rowan, but he wasn't interested in sharing that gaze. He turned away and spent a few moments dwelling on her words until a thought occurred. He turned back towards her and asked, "The day that they found me. Was that because of you? Did you help them save me?"

She stared at Rowan for a long while before shaking her head. Even then, her response was slow and hesitant. "No. Not exactly."

He raised an eyebrow as the girl shied away from him, crossing her legs over one another.

He asked, "So, you didn't tell them how to find me? You didn't help them find me quicker? Even though you knew what would happen?" Out of habit, he peered at her, reading what he could of her features before concluding. "Did you give them any warning at all?"

The content kicking of her legs had ceased, and her voice was glum and methodical. "I heard it all, I did. The night before, I heard the yells, the voices, the snarls-"

He cut her off, "Then why didn't you help? Lux was injured protecting me? I don't understand. He was one of your Defected. You're the Boss because everyone relies on those abilities, and you're not even using them? What could possibly stop you from-"

He clenched his mouth shut. Her expression was hidden, but she was upset. It was plain to see. At first, he was confused, but then he reached out a shaky hand before thinking better of it.

However, then he did. He rested his hand gently on her shoulder. When she turned back to him, he expected tears, but there were none. She glanced at his hand and then back at the forest. He followed her gaze, watching the closest of trees that jutted out, peering down at them. 'Why would someone in charge sit in a dangerous place like this every night.'

This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

A few more moments passed before she spoke and removed his hand with her own.

"I'm sorry. I could have done better. I should have been better, I know."

Rowan was patient, even for him. But he didn't intend to let the issue go. He omitted his response and waited, forcing her to fill the silence under his watchful gaze.

"I heard someone would be injured. I even managed to guess who it might be based on the voice. But I also knew no one had died. Had someone died, I would have heard it. There would have been screams, infighting, blaming... sobbing."

She went silent. That sombre moment lingered as her gaze went to the sky once more.

He wanted to reach out and ask her again, and he almost did. But then, a voice erupted from behind. "There you are." Hector's tall, bold figure appeared behind them. A faint scowl adorning his dark black face.

"That drunkard guessed well. I thought she might have lost you in the forest and covered it up. It's good you remembered to come here. I was looking for you, but we must have missed each other."

Loud and indifferent, Hector strode towards them unawares. The girl flicked her legs over the wall and sat facing him with a pleased smile.

"Sorry about the trouble, Hector. I suppose Rowan will have to give us details on his outing today, too. I heard some peculiar things about it in my vision last night."

Hector nodded his large, thick head as his eyes flickered towards Rowan. "I only slept briefly, but you ran off with that one. I suppose it's safe enough. Even if you were to get lost or die, Boss could warn us. But again, that redhead is unreliable. You're safer here at camp."

Rowan shuffled his body around to face him. A silence ensued between the trio before Hector broke it. "We have more time today. You did well to get here earlier. I'm sorry, but you must give us a full account. If possible, we need to know everything since the Mist swallowed you. No, we'll need more."

'Mist...' His mind, for just a moment, went back to Civilia.

Not many had mentioned the Mist till now. The entity that was the Mist was what had sent them all here, yet otherwise, it was irrelevant. The Mist brought you. But it never sent you back. Hardly anything was known about it, and Rowan knew less than most.

Sitting up straight, Rowan felt a chill across his back as he inhaled. "Okay. I'll tell you everything. From the beginning."

##############################

Hector's face was as incoherent as ever. The subtle swirls of ink on his dark skin suggested but never showed his thoughts. However, the Boss was a different story. Her hand was caressing her chin, her fair skin wrinkled, and her Defected eyes were a dreadful deep blue.

"I'd already heard in my visions it was Civilia you came from. Then, it is no longer the last safe nation. However, for it to have swallowed only you, Rowan? No, I'm sorry, you must be mistaken. That's never been how the Mist works. It isn't just some force of nature; you can't be the only one who entered."

Rowan clasped his hands between his legs, and Hector followed up. "She's right. You confirmed for us that the boundaries are invisible. Like we were all taught. Now, we know there is no easy way to judge the size of the zone. So, there is no way to truly know if you were transported alone that day."

Hector folded his arms and then shared a brief glance with the Boss. She'd grown quiet. So he spoke in her place again, "Rowan. You need to understand. We've been here for two years and never found a boundary."

Rowan bit his lip. "No. No, I find that hard to believe. Two whole years? You must have found one, at least one." Rowan raised an eyebrow, but the ink on Hector's nonchalant face remained placid and still.

Hector replied. "Perhaps you just got lucky. All zones vary a lot in size. But this cold zone, we'll call it, could just be very small. Perhaps that's why you found the boundary so easily."

Hector stopped, and his eyes darted across to the Boss. Her legs hung limp over the wall, and her gaze stuck to the ground. Hector asked her,

"Boss, shouldn't we at least scout it out? I can take a squad and have Rowan help find the way. If things go well, we might finally be able to confirm our suspicions."

"No." Her wispy words almost faded into the night. She murmured. "We are safer here. A different zone is too dangerous, and you know we have a more pressing concern."

She shared a shrewd look with Hector, but he said nothing.

Rowan sat on the wall, observing the two of them. 'What suspicions?' He bit his tongue and endured the silence. His stalwart approach fell apart as he noticed the stiffness and shuffling of the girl beside him. Hector noticed, too, and for the first time, a hint of unrest swirled on his dark, inky face.

"Boss. We have to confirm it. You know that." Folding his arms, the tall Hector looked down on the two of them and said, "We have all the precautions we need. If your vision of tomorrow sounds off, we can save it for another day. I'll even agree to take the redhead minx with us. If we take our elites, we should manage against the Vile roaming about just fine."

Hector's stout tone was betrayed only by the turbulent squirming of his Defect. Perhaps the Boss hadn't noticed his concern. After all, her head remained fixed on the floor. As silence threatened to consume them, Rowan hopped off the wall.

"Why are you leaving me out of the details? I'm glad you have use for me all of a sudden. But you owe me an explanation. What is it? What is it about the cold zone you need to know?"

Frustrated, he glanced up at the girl on her perch and then back at the huge Defected. He'd thought that would be plenty to convince them, but Hector had folded his arms, and the Boss was still silent.

"What is it. Don't you trust me?"

Hector sighed and shook his head. "I trust you, Rowan. This isn't about trust, and we're not sure ourselves. It's just... a delicate issue." Rowan frowned and prepared some scolding words. Until Hector interrupted, "But you're right. We can't keep avoiding the issue."

Together, they turned to the silent girl who had no choice but to raise her head and meet their gaze. Her lips tightened but then slowly opened. However, Hector was not as patient as Rowan was.

"That Devoured Rowan saw in the cold. If we're right about where exactly that zone is. Then you put the pieces together. You must know what this really means."

She looked towards Rowan for a moment, her face pale. That darkness in her eyes made him wonder. 'What does that look mean? Is she trying to get my help?'Squinting, he almost went to her side, but Hector's words beat him to it.

"It's been two years, Garuda, and he hasn't rescued us. There's something there. Something not even your brother can kill."

She wrapped her arms around her body and squeezed. She folded in on herself, shivering as her eyes turned an awful dark black.

Then she cried.

######################

There wasn't much else to be said after that. Rowan had more questions than ever, but even he felt bad. It took a lot to make him bite his tongue when he was worked up. But he did.

Rowan had expected Hector to embrace her or go over and soothe her. Be he just stood, staring. The two watched the crying girl together as their awkward stalemate ensued.

Until the time finally came.

Her eyes turned glossy, and her consciousness drifted while she stared blankly at the ground. She almost fell, but Hector picked her off the wall with his large hands.

Holding her in a gentle princess carry, he turned to Rowan. "Go use my bed. I've got a lot I need to deal with. So you can use it for now."

Before sending him off, Hector reminded him not to run off tomorrow. He still intended to visit the boundary, assuming the Boss's visions were fine. They would see nothing of her if it was safe, not until the next night.

The way back was dark, and the buildings were so similar. He was struggling to find his way amidst them as his lip curled. 'Is that what she does all day? Shut herself away from everything?'

He thought back to that stark image of the girl. Facing the empty night sky alone, lost. Watching those leering forest trees with her dim blue pupils. 'She has it easy.'

He found the biggest building easily enough. It was flooded with the fumes of heat, meat and alcohol, drawing him right to it. Outside, he stared at it with a bitter frown.

The enormous dining hall was alive and thriving with warm light, a useful marker for finding his way back. But he wasn't so quick to move on. He stood there for a while until a voice called out to him.

"Are you really considering going in all alone? I'm amazed." With a rhythm to his walk and a smoothness to his words, Rowan recognised him even in the dark.

"Is it you, Nero? Where have you been? I haven't seen you all day." Even through the thick veil of night, he'd noticed Rowan standing outside.

Rowan tore himself away from the grand building as he turned to face his grinning Defectedless counterpart emerging from the dark. The dining hall's light drew Nero's gaze up, illuminating them both.

Nero said. "I'm just kidding. Of course, you're not going in. Even I'm not brave enough to go in alone." Approaching, he tapped a fist into Rowan's shoulder, grinning. "As for where I've been. Well, up to no good."

Rowan almost smiled. "If you don't want to tell me, then fine."

Nero nodded. There was a spring in his step, and he even started to teeter on his right foot. "Oh, come on, Rowan, it's not like that. I'm doing you a favour. I can't possibly burden you with such incriminating knowledge. Not out loud." Groping his chest with his right hand, the corner of his mouth pulled up, smirking. "If you prove yourself to me, I'll let you in on what I've been up to."

Rowan sneered and crossed his arms. "Never mind. Somehow, I forgot that I don't care. Why are you out here in the dark anyway?"

Nero blinked at him before he turned and shrugged. His attention was drawn to the dining hall as shrills of laughter suddenly erupted. "What am I supposed to be doing, Rowan? Sleeping? How would I manage that?"

Rowan nodded. "I see. They do seem much louder tonight. Tchh," Rowan clicked his tongue. "I could really do with some sleep too."

He felt a pair of intrusive hazel eyes on him, but he ignored them. Biting his lip, Rowan asked, "Nero, do you think I'll fit in. I know you're not interested at all. At being part of them. But what about me?"

Nero snorted and squatted on the ground. Wet flowers and grass surrounded their feet, but he didn't seem to mind. "If you wanted to, you could go in right now, duh. It's that easy. Aside from being loud, they're just doing what they want? So why aren't you?"

"I don't know." Rowan looked down at Nero's brown, auburn hair. "I don't know."

Nero smirked and plucked at the flowers around him unimpeded by the dark. "Then it sounds like that isn't what you want. But what do I know?"

He glanced up with a teasing grin before returning to the flowers below. Rowan watched him fidget before sighing and dropping to the grass with him. "I want to help them."

Nero turned to him with a smile, holding out a flower for him. "But why, though?"

"I don't want to be a burden."

Nero's smile slipped for the first time, replaced by a frown. Until he grabbed his forehead and leant back in laughter. "God, you're just so mopey. Besides, why are you asking me? The freeloader, right?"

Sat in the wet grass, Rowan cupped his right cheek, hiding his face from Nero. "If you're just gonna make fun of me, I'll leave."

Nero ignored him and went back to plucking the flowers. The grass around them was soon rid of them, at least any Rowan could spot in the dark. Nero chucked his fistful of flowers away before looking back at Rowan again.

"It's not hard. Rowan, it's just not. I don't get you. Just throw the bullshit away. Nobody's watching you. No one's listening... well."

Nero laughed. "I mean, who are you trying to impress? Me? Someone you knew? I did think we were similar at first glance. But we, really, really aren't. Sorry."

Soon, there wasn't anything left for him to fidget with but his shoe. Despite how ridiculous Nero looked, Rowan listened. His mouth lingered open before he said, "We're going on a mission tomorrow. I have to help them find the boundary. Hector thinks they can finally confirm exactly where we are and-"

"Yaawwwwwwwwwwwwn". Nero yawned.

It was long enough and loud enough that Rowan gave up explaining. He watched Nero climb to his feet lazily.

"God, you're making me sleepy. Just don't go. Do what you want. I shouldn't have to tell you." He shared one last smirk with Rowan before waltzing into the dark night, leaving Rowan wet and annoyed on the grass.

Clicking his tongue, Rowan rose to his feet and stared. Then he went the other way.