I was passed around like a basket of fruit from one set of hands to another. That girl that Zeke left me with… She’s not normal. she broke into a sprint the second he turned around and went sliding down the incline with me in tow. She didn’t even flinch when dry leaves scratched her arms.

Is she another Spark user? To think that there would be two at this isolated village! She barreled down a path kicking up a cloud of dust. It got so bad that I was still coughing when we entered a building.

There was an older looking woman organising papers from behind an old desk. She had a neutral expression similar to Zeke’s as she worked. The room had two windows on opposite sides of the room that let in a negligible amount of light due to how smudged they were. This created an almost dream-like atmosphere. She was so engrossed in her activities that she didn’t even notice we were there.

“Miss W! I’m back!”

The older woman flinched. I blinked the tears out of my eyes that had been caused by excessive coughing, and got a better look at her. Her hair was a faded red, swept out of the way and pinned back with a pencil. Her clothing was quite traditional with a long, grey skirt and an old blouse. She took one glance at me and dropped everything she was doing.

“It’s good to see that you’ve come back from… wherever you went, Cam, but what are you doing with the intruder?”

“I found him!”

Cam stood straighter and tried to put her hands on her hips despite her arms being full.

“You found him?”

“Yep!”

The older woman nodded for her to continue.

“He was up with the cows and Zeke- Zeke was so cool! He went like blam! Blam! Blam! To protect the cows. Oh! The cows are out of the fence now by the way. He picked up this guy and told me to bring him here.”

What? Why is this story confusing me? I was there! I rubbed my head.

“Really? Is it safe to have him out here?”

The older woman leaned over and inspected me. I didn’t notice this before, but she’s very tall.

“He’s powerless now! More a danger to himself than anything else!”

Did she have to phrase it like that? It was like I had been stabbed by her words.

“Did Zeke tell you this?”

“Yep!”

The older woman sighed and reached over for me. This is when that embarrassing exchange happened. Cam handed my limp body over with a surprising amount of nonchalance. I couldn’t even fight it or cause a fuss because I was too tired. My body is so weak now, I hate it.

The older woman elected to carry me bridal style instead of tucking me under her arm. Is this better? Not by much. I layed there, considering playing dead, while Cam gave more nonsensical reports to the older woman. When she was done, she gave a salute and headed for the door.

“Cam, wait, did Zeke say what to do with him?”

“Oh!”

Cam smacked her hands against her cheeks.

“I almost forgot! Zekey said to work him hard!”

With those final words, she dashed out the door and slammed it shut. When the door shut, the older woman glanced at me, then moved over to her desk. She put me down on a wooden chair and sat opposite me. She clasped her hands together and leaned on them.

“So Mr intruder…”

She sized me up.

“What would your name be?”

“...Trist”

“Your full name sir.”

The woman released a strong aura.

“Trist G-golden.”

There are so many scary people on this farm. Or maybe people have become a lot scarier since I lost my spark. Either way, I don’t think I’ll be getting out of this with all limbs attached.

“Well Mr Golden, It’s very nice to finally be having this conversation. I’m Wendy Synt.”

She has a surname?

“If they actually did anything, I would have handed you over to the Overseers. Trespassing, attempted assault, theft. Plus, showing up in front of us half alive and making us use our resources on a stranger.”

She shook her head.

“If you were still a Shimmer, we would have tied you to a boat, sent you downstream, and let Gaia be your guide.”

She chuckled.

“But, you… have lost your powers. Somehow, someway, a miracle has happened. Although, to you, it might be a nightmare.”

She locked eyes with me.

“I assure you, Mr Golden, the nightmare hasn’t even begun yet.”

This… might be worse than I thought. Am I going to be ok?

“It’s good to finally have another man around. We needed someone as durable as Zeke. If you’re not, then you’ll just have to find creative ways to keep up.”

I’m not going to be ok.

“You’re gonna be fine, bud.”

I don’t know why but that phrase triggered something in my brain. Red seeped into my vision and body shook. Who did this woman think she was? Ordering me around like a noble when she’s just a farmer. Moreover, calling me ‘bud’? Zeke was a Shimmer but she’s just a dud. I don’t feel the slightest amount of power from her. Why am I shaking like she could actually do anything to me? I must have gone mad.

I clenched my fist and locked eyes with her. With or without my powers, I’m still from a higher pedigree. I’ve been out of sorts for far too long. It’s about time I returned to my old self. Though I won't go too far since Zeke could come running back at any moment, but if I let her walk over me now, she’ll think that I’m nothing but a spineless coward.

“I’m sure I will be.”

I’m not a coward.

“I’m a Golden.”

“Of course. I would put you down for harder tasks, but Zeke took them all. You can join girls basket weaving in the field.”

***

This is going to be a problem. Whilst walking down the wor- no, Byg trail, I almost ran headfirst into a herd. It was lucky that Mister M warned me ahead of time so I could climb a tree.

“You’re pretty handy, Mister M.”

Can you not call me that? I beg of you.

“What should I call you then?”

Relxwedyaxzx, Lord of all Cursed Objects!

“...Nah.”

Back to the matter at hand. After I climbed the tree, the Bygs decided that now would be the perfect time to stop for no reason. So I’m stuck up here.

“You got any ideas?”

I turned to the piece of metal in my hand.

Ideas? For what?

“How to get out of here.”

I gestured to the worms below.

What? It’s not like you’re stranded. There are other trees around you that you can use.

“Oh. Alright.”

I reached for another tree and fumbled from one branch to another. The bark was strong and dry, plus, my shoes had good grips, so I had no problems balancing. Despite that, I hesitated between each branch. It would have been cool if I could run across them like they were a second ground, but it’s not like I’ve ever done this before.

What’s this? Your display with the cows had convinced me you were a master. N-not that you’re not a master but-

“It’s fine. I understand.”

To the average observer I would have seemed like an experienced master but…

“I’m pretty good at making it up as I go along. I’m just strength, not skill.”

As if to prove this, the next branch I stepped on snapped under my weight. I was clutching the metal piece with one hand, which only left me with one to stop myself from plummeting into a wormy hoard.

I made the motions to pull myself up but the branch holding me up creaked then snapped a little.

“Well, that’s not good.”

I looked around. No other branch was close enough for me to reach without letting go of the branch I was holding. I guess I might have to try my luck with the Bygs bellow. I glanced down. They were wiggling a lot less than before. Maybe they could break my fall.

The branch I was hanging onto snapped more. I closed my eyes and braced myself.

Quick! Use the branch to get closer to the tree trunk and hang on!

My body moved before my brain did. I used the breaking branch to swing closer to the trunk and let go. As I hit the trunk, I wrapped my arms around it. The thick bark was just enough grip for me to not fall. After a few seconds, I let out a long sigh.

“You really saved me there, Mister M.”

I dug my free hand into the tree for a better grip.

What? N-no, I only did that to protect myself!

“Still, I’m thankful. I would have had to face a bunch of worms without you.”

Right…

I edged down the tree until my foot hit a branch. After that, I made it past the rest of the hoard without too much trouble. Once we were a good distance away, I climbed back down. It wasn’t until I had walked for a few more hours before Mister M stopped me again.

Go left. We wouldn’t want to walk straight into their nest.

I went left. Did he sense something else? Does that mean that we’re close? I didn’t have to wonder for long as my foot hit a sudden incline. It got steeper and steeper until the trees disappeared revealing a cliff.

Look down.

I peered over the cliff.

“Oh… Oh no…”