“How far is it?” Zeke asked, glancing back the way they’d come. They had been following a game trail for a couple of miles, which meant that their companions were well beyond shouting range. If he and Abby got into trouble, they wouldn’t be able to count on the others for help. Even Pudge was off exploring a cave that he’d said, “smelled interesting,” whatever that meant. The thought had been accompanied by a host of vague impressions, but Zeke was ill-equipped to make much sense of the jumbled thoughts. However, given that Pudge had continued to grow, and now exceeded an Earthen grizzly bear in size, Zeke wasn’t too worried about his friend. He was a little nervous about being alone with Abby, though.

Zeke knew precisely how silly it was. The pair had been sleeping together for a few months now. But aside from their death defying adventures, they hadn’t really been alone for quite some time. In the cottage, there was always someone close by, and like any communal living situation, privacy wasn’t a realistic expectation. As miraculous as the cottage was, sound carried extremely well through its walls – a fact that was exacerbated by everyone’s enhanced senses. Nothing happened in that house without everyone knowing about it, which made the entire circumstance a bit suffocating, at least in terms of privacy.

But out here in the woods, with no one else around for miles and miles? The couple might’ve been the last two people in the Radiant Isles, and Zeke found the solitude both disconcerting and comforting. The former, because, as long as they had been companions, he and Abby hadn’t really shared that many conversations that didn’t directly involved their plans for the future, fighting monsters, or how to deal with the speed bumps along the way. Zeke knew Abby at a fundamental level. During the course of their partnership, her character had been laid bare, just as his had for her. They had connected in a way that exceeded the superficial depth that had confined his previous relationships. He hesitated to even think of those brief, high school flings in those terms anymore. They hadn’t mattered – not in the grand scope of his life or even in the moment, really. They had been the product of expectations, and even now, he struggled to remember much about his previous girlfriends.

However, there is something to be said for superficiality. Zeke wasn’t so inexperienced that he thought it was a good idea to base an entire relationship on it, but it did serve to deepen the bond. Or at the very least, it would give them something to talk about that didn’t concern hopping from one crisis to the next.

For now, though, Zeke was terrified that Abby would discover something she didn’t like. What if they just weren’t compatible? What if things didn’t go well, and it drove a wedge between them? Zeke didn’t want to go through this world alone. He wanted Abby right there with him, standing shoulder to shoulder as they made a place for themselves. He wanted it to last.

One of Zeke’s worst fears was that he would end up back in a similar situation as he’d been in when he had been reborn. Not in a troll-infested cave, exactly; rather, he was terrified of spending so much time with only himself for company. Looking back, he knew he’d come close to breaking, and it had taken him the better part of a year to feel even remotely normal. Even now, every stray noise, regardless of how big or small, woke him up at night. And more than once, he’d had nightmares about wall crawlers wrapping their tentacles around him. Or being butchered and eaten by remorseless trolls.

He could handle those fears, though. They were rational. Natural, even. Wall crawlers were terrifying creatures, and he’d found himself on the business end of that fear on more than one occasion. And trolls were similar, especially considering what he’d seen in that troll larder so long ago. The same could be said for a dozen other murderous monsters he’d encountered in those troll caves. However, that fear of being alone wasn’t something he knew how to fight. It was ephemeral and amorphous, and he had absolutely zero notion of how to combat it. The only thing that comforted him was the proximity of his companions – chiefly, Abby and Pudge.

It was one of the reasons he’d insisted upon keeping Talia and Tucker around. Aside from the fact that they both needed help, Zeke was so afraid of being alone that he kept accumulating strays. Could he once again endure being stranded alone? Probably. He wasn’t the sort to give in. However, there was every chance that he’d lose his mind in the process. After all, he’d been close before, and that was when he’d had the overall shock of being reborn into a new world to dull the sting of losing everything and everyone he’d ever known. Even then, he’d spent much of his time reminiscing about his horrible father and his unique upbringing. Now, though, in curious turn of events, he felt he had more to lose. His life in the Radiant Isles felt more real than anything he’d experienced back on Earth.

Those thoughts and fears occupied Zeke’s mind as Abby grabbed his hand, saying, “It’s not far, and it’s totally worth it. You’ll see.”

With that, she tugged him along as they descended the steep slope of the mountain path. Around them, evergreen trees stretched toward the sky, and various rocks and boulders obscured the forest floor. The rest of the area was covered in thick undergrowth, a result of the area’s incessant rainfall. According to Tucker, when they’d crested the ridgeline, they’d crossed into a temperate rainforest. He had described it as not dissimilar from the Pacific northwest. To Zeke, though, who’d grown up the sub-tropical climate of lower Alabama, it felt a little like coming home. The dampness, the humidity, and the constant drizzle wasn’t so different from where he’d lived for most of his life. It was markedly colder, with frost and ice covering the area on most mornings, but the combination of his high endurance, evolved race, and ice resistance took the bite out of the chill air, making it mostly pleasant – primarily because Abby had already cleared any underbrush that obscured the trail.

Gradually, they made their way through the forest, and Zeke soon heard the rushing sound of water. A few minutes later, they came out of the forest to see a small waterfall with a pond at its base.

“It…it’s beautiful,” Zeke said, taking in the picturesque scene. Falling in tiers, with heavy tree trunks spanning its narrow width, it wasn’t the majestic image Zeke would’ve conjured when he thought of a waterfall. However, what it lacked in majesty, it more than made up for in sheer vibrance. Its banks were enveloped in a verdant, green moss that coated the rocks in the middle of the stream as well. Trees had fallen across the stream’s narrow width, and from their trunks grew tiny, blue flowers that glowed with their own light. Beneath the white, foaming surface of the rushing stream were luminescent fish tiny and moving so quickly that they looked almost like tracers. Finally, floating, red lights, each no bigger than Zeke’s thumbnail, drifted in the air.

Abby stepped closer, leaning into him. “I thought you’d like it,” she said. Pointing at the lights, she explained, “Those are wisps. Not many people ever see them in the wild.”

“Why not? Are they that rare?” he asked.

“No, no – nothing like that,” she said. “It’s just that they’re really useful to crafters. When you kill them, they drop these tiny gems. They’re not beast cores, but they’re attuned to a specific element. Like these are fire wisps, so if you want to make, say, a weapon that has a fire effect or enhances fire skills, you’d crush their gems down into a powder, and, well, you get the idea.”

Zeke held up a hand, and one of the wisps alighted onto it. It was nothing more than a ball of light, but it still had weight. He twisted his hand around, and the tiny creature tickled its way to his palm. “Not much survival instinct,” he said.

“Another reason they’re popular for crafters,” she said. “There are whole farms where specialized workers grow them. They’re not as potent as wild wisps, but…well, they make up for it in numbers.”

“Quantity over quality,” Zeke said, continuing to play with the creature. Another joined the first, and then another after that. After only a second, Zeke’s entire hand was enveloped in a soothing, red glow.

“Something like that,” was her response.

Zeke shook his hand, and the wisps flew away. Looking behind him, Zeke found a small boulder that could accommodate them both, and he sat down. Abby joined him, her hand finding his. For a few moments, they just sat there, taking in the natural beauty of the scene before them. After spending the last few weeks rushing from one instance of mortal danger to another, it was imminently relaxing to just sit and enjoy a few moments of peace. Especially when he had Abby leaning against him, her head on his shoulder.

Finally, he said, “It’s easy, isn’t it?”

“What?” she asked, her voice languid.

“To get lost in the killing,” was his response. “The looting. The experience. Everything about this world seems like it’s pushing us into becoming…something I don’t want to become. Every problem seems so much easier to solve if you just attack it head-on. We tried to do the right thing with that giant. We let her go, and we were going to head our own way. But then she had to ruin it, didn’t she? Why? Why couldn’t she just take the freedom and run with it?”

“You know why,” Abby said. “If someone doomed your entire race to extinction, you’d want to kill that person, too. She was justified in what she did.”

“So, you still think we should have just let them keep him?” he asked.

“No,” was Abby’s surprising response. “As much as I argued against it, I think we made the right choice. You would’ve never been able to live with yourself if you left him behind.”

Zeke didn’t miss her wording. She would have been fine leaving Tucker behind, but she wasn’t willing to accept what it would do to him. That had to be enough, didn’t it?

“Look,” Abby said. “I need to tell you something, and you’re not going to like it.”

He turned, locking eyes with her. For a second, he didn’t respond, but then, finally, he said, “What is it?”

She glanced down at the mossy ground, her ponytail bobbing with the motion. Her shoulders slumped, and she took a deep breath before turning back to him and saying, “I gave Martel your name. Back in Beacon. I’m not sure if he was just testing me, or if he really didn’t know who you were, but I exchanged your name for information. It helped me figure out what was going on with the Crystal Spiders, and I’m pretty sure I’d do it again, given the choice. My only regret is that I didn’t tell you sooner. I’m sorry.”

A pregnant silence stretched between them, lasting for almost a half-minute before Zeke said, “Okay.”

Abby’s eyes widened in surprise, and she said, “Wait, what? That’s it? Just…okay?”

“What did you expect?” he answered. “Should I yell and scream and throw things?”

“No, but…I mean…I’ve been carrying that with me for months, now,” she said. “I thought you’d be furious. I thought you’d hate me!”

“Oh,” he said. “Well, I’m not. And I don’t.”

“Why?”

He sighed, running his hand through his short hair. “Listen,” he said. “I’m not that guy. I’ll never be that guy. Even if I’m spitting mad, I’ll never do any of that. That’s what my dad was like, and he’s pretty much the opposite of who I want to be. It didn’t matter if it was me, my little brother, or my mom. It could be perfect strangers. People on the road. The people he worked with. His temper was on a hair trigger. He was the kind of guy who’d yell and scream and bang on his steering wheel when someone wasn’t going fast enough on the highway. He was the kind of man who didn’t think twice about putting my mom on the floor. He called it ‘putting her in her place’. He beat me. The only person he never hit was my little brother, and that was because Tommy wasn’t worth his time. He was broken, you see? Dad didn’t care about his defective son.”

Zeke stood, rubbing the back of his neck and taking a couple of steps away. He turned back to face Abby, continuing, “For most of my life, I tried everything I could to make him happy. Even the smallest compliment was enough to push me just a step further. I told myself that if I was good enough, he’d…he wouldn’t always be so angry with me. It wasn’t until I got a little older that I realized that none of us really mattered. He was always mad because he hated himself and his life. It had nothing to do with us.”

“I…I’m sorry,” Abby said.

“Thanks,” was Zeke’s response. “But my point is that I don’t want to be anything like him. Sure, I wish you would’ve told me about this, but it’s done. It’s in the past. And it didn’t really change anything, did it? A guy like Master Silas would have figured it out with or without your help. That’s his job, right? I’m sure he already knew who I was.”

“The thought had crossed my mind once or twice,” Abby admitted. “But I can’t help but feel like I’ve earned your anger. I know it’s stupid. If you’re fine with it, then I should be, too.”

“But you don’t think you deserve it, right?” he asked.

She shrugged. “Blame my own messed-up life,” she said. Abby had alluded to her own failed marriage, and had made enough references to her ex-husband that Zeke felt justified in hating the nameless, faceless man who had caused Abby so much pain. “But we don’t have to let that define who we are, do we? We can get past it. We’ve both got trauma, but this is our chance of going in a different direction.”

“That’s how I look at it,” Zeke stated. “But I accept that I’ll never be completely past it. Even if I live another hundred years, I’ll probably still think about him sometimes. I don’t have to let it affect my actions, though.”

Abby smiled. “You’re pretty smart sometimes,” she said.

“Just sometimes?” he asked.

“I stand by the statement,” was her sarcastic reply. “Now, how about we have a picnic and just enjoy not having something trying to kill us for a few hours?”

Zeke smiled, and in only a minute or two, he’d retrieved a blanket and some food he’d been saving for just such an occasion. Abby punched him in the arm, saying, “You’ve been holding back, haven’t you? You’ve had all of this in your storage since Bastion?”

“I’ve actually got a lot more,” he said. “I had Mags working overtime while we were there. She cooked so many ribs.”

“So, why have we been eating rations and monster meat all this time?” she asked with a raised eyebrow, helping herself to one of the racks of ribs Zeke had pulled out of his storage. It was still piping hot, like it had come out of the smoker only a few minutes ago.

“Mags’ barbecue is a special occasion kind of meal, isn’t it?” he said. Sweeping his hand around, he asked, “And what’s more special than this?”

Abby gestured with a rib, pointing at him as she said, “You’ve definitely got a point. I’ll forgive you. This time. But I expect the ribs to keep coming.”

He grinned. “As you wish.”

She laughed. “Is that going to be our thing, now? Princess Bride quotes?” she asked. “I’m not complaining or anything. Just asking.”

“Seemed appropriate,” Zeke said, blushing a bit.

“You’re not wrong,” was her response. “You are definitely not wrong.”