HUUUUUUGGEEEE!

Cairo stared off at the statue, his mind wondering the significance of it. Why it had felt so ominous to him both in Lastlight and now here. It was as if there was a feint familiar feeling, something that he'd felt before.

As his gaze lingered, it caught onto Yuna was a couple steps ahead of him. Her body just as stunned as his.

But she was looking at something else. Something other than the statue. Cairo traced it to the walls behind the statue in which some illegible writing laid etched on the wall. Grated into the calcite walls in an aggressive manner.

He figured the noble in her was just too prideful to admit they couldn't read it.

Though he could care less about that meaningless self-worth that nobles had just for being born. As if their existence was something that deserved itself.

Cairo clicked his tongue as the thought grew in his head.

"Nun but chicken scratch there."

Yuna didn't say anything, instead nodded her head as she continued towards the statue. Cairo following a couple steps behind, tracing her movements.

Yuna coughed as she stressed herself to speak, her voice coarse.

"It doesn't matter...We have to gather clues anyways..."

"Clues on what? I'm not into no history shit."

Yuna looked back, a look of sly playfulness in her eyes.

"Clues...to find a way out...Clues to Atlas."

Cairo scowled.

"You looking down on me?"

"A little."

"I could cut you down right now..."

Cairo was interrupted by Yuna's coughing fit. A smile creeping on his face as he watched her lurk over.

"...Look at you. You can barely stand, shorty."

Yuna pounded her chest a couple times, forcing herself to stand up straight.

"And yet, I'm the only one of value here."

Cairo bit his lips. He hated it, but she was right. She was the only one out of the three that had even the slightest clue about Atlas. Or at least that's what she was letting on.

Cairo grew more and more annoyed by the days.

"So then, just where in the hell is atlas?"

Yuna smiled.

"Well its..."

——————————————————

Naren ran through bounds of foliage, wrapping vines and twisting trees. The deep purple flora seemingly moving around as they tried to latch onto his legs.

Naren grabbed onto a tree branch avoiding a patch of snapping flytraps that seemed to grow an appetite for humans. His bare feet scratched up already by some other thorny bush.

And yet, despite how far he ran, he could still hear the stampeding steps of the giant duck that had been chasing him.

And on top of that, there was also the annoying girl that had been latching onto him since the start. Screaming and crying her eyes out like a little kid.

"Go faster please! It's still coming! It's getting closer!"

"Shuddup will you!"

Naren tried many times to throw the girl off, but every time he did a violent and tremendous weight would suddenly appear on his shoulder completely stopping him in his tracks.

The weight lifting right after into a light feather right after when he let her hang on in peace.

He assumed that it was something to do with her fable.

"Faster! Hide!"

But man was she annoying.

Naren slid under a tree root as he continued running away. His eyes darting around for reflections of any type, or anything that he could use. But nothing was useful.

The dim light of the blue bugs only allowed him to see the feint reflective petals of leaves from moisture in the air in a close proximity to himself that would do nothing in his escape attempts. And anything else was shrouded in complete darkness too far from his view.

To add insult to injury. He was exhausting. He was basically running on fumes at this point. Every step Naren took was just pulling from his already empty tank as his eyes faltered.

Trying to blot out the complaining of the girl on his back, he cut left hopping over a fallen tree before he finally made it out of the jungle.

A clearing with a vast emerald lake staring back at him.

"Can ducks swim?"

Naren asked the girl his voice draining as he spoke. He was hoping for a positive affirmation, even though he wasn't sure if he even had the energy to swim. But instead, he was met with silence for the first time since she had grabbed onto him. Yet, for some reason the silence was irking him more than her saying no.

"Are you serious?"

Naren ruffled his hair as he heard the duck stomp closer behind him.

"Whatever! We'll find out!"

Just as he got ready to jump into the water, the surface rippled. His ears perked as his eyes widened.

'There's no way. There's absolutely no way.'

The lake surface broke as a fish flew out of the water. Jumping through the air right back inside. Except it wasn't a normal. The fish spanned at least five meters in length. It's little stunt sending waves of water flowing and spraying at Naren that stood on the sideline.

Fortunately for Naren, the wave had washed the girl right off his back.

Unfortunately for him, the duck had caught up. It's beak looking down on him for almost ten meters in the air as it bent it's head studying him.

The duck took a step closer as Naren had his back to the lake.

Then he realized something. This is just a duck. What the hell was he so scared for?

Naren focused his attention to the ducks legs. If he could bring them down then the big chicken would just fall right over, letting him have his way with it. He could even fry it up.

Naren eyes suddenly lit up as he imagined eating poultry.

Naren took a step forward his eyelids half covering his eyes, his hands dragging down like deadweights as exhaustion caught on. The duck's expression changed as it noticed the devilish look in Naren's eyes. It grew flustered, taking a step backwards, quacking.

"EEEEEEEEPPP!"

Naren covered his ears at the sudden outburst.

A grating boom shocking him as the duck fell the ground in a swift motion, exploding into feathers and guts. As if a meteor just pierced right through it.

As the dust settled, a girl sat in the midst of the intestines and gore. Her face in a pitiful expression as if she was about to cry whilst simultaneously covered in blood and feathers. Her beanie completely bleached in red.

She spoke in a whiney tone, as tears swelled in her eyes.

"I was so scared!"

Naren tilted his head.

"You coulda done that...the whole tiiiimmmeeee..."

As his words waned off, Naren toppled over with the exhaustion finally catching up.

——————————————————

Cairo's eye was stuck wide as he stared at Yuna. Her lips quivering as she explained to him where Atlas was. Her face caught in a smile while Cairo's grew more and more star struck.

"You're tweaking...You think I'm a fuckin nut?!"