Sometimes, Matt felt as if life gave him a chance. Sometimes it was something small: finding a poisonless fruit along the way. Others were so important that they would change his life forever: like being rescued by Master Soul.

And more times than just a few, Matt let such opportunities slip by. Like when he refused to leave the ship's hold the first time they docked. Or when he had followed Kyle into the forest not many days ago.

Constantly, Matt had the decision of his life at his fingertips, and let them slip by.

That's how he felt at that moment.

He jumped, as high as he could, and tried to grab Mei's ankle with his hand. He even felt her skin brush his fingertips.

And then his fist closed around the air. He fell to his knees on the ground, feeling his foot throbbing in pain. He let out a scream, but it wasn't from the injury. Kenny, thrown to the ground as well, was breathing hard and couldn't stop crying. A trickle of blood ran from her mouth, and he could see that she had dislocated something in the torso area. There were two symmetrical cuts on her forearm, where one of the creatures had torn it when the girl tried to hold Mei.

Mei...

Matt had seen her being taken away. Watched, kneeling on the ground, as the three creatures flew away, carrying the little girl hanging by one of her ankles by a leather whip. Ryou staggered over to Kenny, who buried her face in his shoulder and cried.

"What is happening?! SOMEBODY--".

It was Kyle. He was still lying in the bush, where Ryou had pushed him. It had all happened too quickly. None of them would probably have survived if it weren't for the youngest's senses. He had saved them all. All of them except...

“Mei was taken,” Kenny replied in a hoarse voice.

Kyle opened his mouth and then closed it again. He looked lost.

"Taken? By whom?".

Matt bit his lip. He didn't know what those things were. And that made him terrified. Again, it was Ryou who saved them:

“Erinias,” he said, trembling.

This time, everyone was silent. There seemed to be something more behind his tone of voice, but no one dared to ask. Matt had heard about Erinias, although he didn't know what they were. Kenny added:

"They are free creatures, who roam distributing punishments to criminals. Many believe that they work for the Second Order, but most likely they are just beings of torture and punishment," she explained. "Master Soul always talks about them".

As soon as she finished speaking, Kenny stood up, leaning on the younger one. She was still panting and seemed to be unable to move her torso properly, but she wiped the blood from her face and began to walk.

"Where are you going?" Matt asked.

"Where?" Kenny repeated, with hatred brimming in her eyes. "I will save my sister".

Kyle jumped up. He had his face turned the wrong way, but Matt nodded along when he said:

"You can't go alone!"

Kenny glared at him. Matt had never seen her so absurdly angry before. She looked like she was about to break their necks.

“Oh, shut up, Kyle,” she growled. "I know very well that you don't consider any of us family, and, honestly, I don't care. But Mei is my sister. She and Ryou are my only family, and I will kill anyone who tries to take her from me".

Matt swallowed hard. More blood began to escape from the corners of her mouth, and he figured that whatever she had broken, it was best to take care of it soon. But she didn't give him the chance.

"Kenny, wait a minute!" He pleaded. "Master Soul will come and save us, for sure, remember? He came to save me when Kyle and I..."

Stolen novel; please report.

"Master Soul is a tutor, Matthew, not our father," she reminded him, and her words caused a kind of pain in the boy that he couldn't describe. "He saved you adventurers when you were attacked in the forest. You should see this as an opportunity to put the teachings into practice. He..." her gaze went south, distant "He wouldn't show up for us again".

Matt would like to believe that she was wrong, that Master Soul would soon appear and take them back to the clearing, and then rescue Mei, but he knew that, as always, Kenny was right.

"You two are under no obligation to follow us." she reminded them. "You can stay here. I'm sure Master will appear at some point".

He looked at Kyle, who still had his face turned in the wrong direction. It was true. Neither he nor Kyle had any obligation to go after Mei. She was not his sister. She was, in reality, nothing to him, other than a little child with whom he shared his food and the forest ground at bedtime.

But somehow he felt a pang in his chest as he remembered Mei. Mei, with skin as pale as snow, and kind eyes. With black and purple hair always so messy. Mei, who had worried about him even when Kyle had cursed her in every possible way.

"I'll go".

Kyle swallowed hard, his Adam's apple rising and falling. His knees were shaking, and he was visibly terrified, but he was firm as he repeated:

"I'll go," and he added: "I just need someone to guide me".

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The four followed, being guided by Ryou's sense of smell, which tracked the younger girl's scent. Matt's foot hurt with every step, and Kenny still needed to lean on the other boy to walk.

Night didn't take long to fall. It was simply impossible to see anything in the forest at night, so, under strong protests from Kenny, they set up camp. Even in that situation, she didn't forget to change Kyle's medicine. From the brief moment his eyes were visible, Matt realized they were wet with tears.

He didn't think it was the medicine's fault.

The temperature dropped along with the darkness. Matt felt his knees and jaw shaking, and he saw that the other boys seemed bothered by the cold as well. Only Kenny, leaning against a tree, didn't seem shaken. He watched, saw that the other boys were sleeping, and approached her.

Matt didn't know if Kenny had ever forgiven him for the fight, but when he stopped to think about it, it seemed so distant now. The broken ankle, Kyle's possible blindness, and now this... Matt felt stupid for giving so much importance to a little fight. Kenny had just seen her sister get taken away by cruel creatures. She probably cared little about anything Matt might say or do.

"Doesn't the cold hurt you?"

Kenny looked at him. Matt thought she was just the tiniest bit like her little sister. Almost no resemblance to be seen. He thought that, when they grew up, they would probably look so different that no one would be able to tell they were sisters.

"Mei and I..." she hesitated. "We were abandoned in Kayen when we were children".

"Kayen?" Matt repeated. "The Snow Mountains?

“That's right,” she agreed. "We spent a few years there. Mei almost starved to death once".

"And you?"

Kenny gave him a sad smile.

"More than just once".

Matt understood. He didn't doubt that Kenny had skipped eating several times to feed Mei.

"And so you were saved by Ryou?" Matt's gaze automatically flew to the sleeping boy, snoring softly.

"Yes. And then again, by Master Soul".

"But you were the first person to save Mei," Matt said, without thinking much.

Kenny looked away.

Matt hoped they could save her once again.