"Eva…that man you heard—the one who made the offer? He's the reason we came here."
Eva slowly lifted her head, ink still slicking down her cheeks.
"You came here…for him?" Her voice was barely breath, disbelief tangled with fear.
"We came here for him..." Ren reintegrated. "We came here together."
Her lips parted, startled.
"But how? Why would we—why would you—walk toward something like that? You heard his voice as well? You should know the fear he causes. I...can feel his impact around me."
Ren looked away for a moment. The storm outside the window hadn't let up.
"That's the very reason we have to..."
Everything about Eva's posture locked—her shoulders, her breath, even the ink flowing beneath her eyes seemed to hesitate, the disbelief on her face giving way to shock.
"...Kill him? What makes you think something like that can die?"
Ren looked back at her, and there was no arrogance or bravado—only a quiet, sober truth.
"Because we've done it before."
For an instant, she looked like the world beneath her feet had split open.
"…Before?" She echoed, the word trembling. "We've…killed something like him before?"
Ren didn't answer right away. His silence wasn't hesitation—more like he was letting the weight of what he said settle between them.
Eva's fingers dug into the wooden gift, knuckles taut and trembling.
"That's impossible. Nothing…nothing that speaks like that could die. His voice alone—" She shuddered, her ink-smeared eyelashes pinching shut. "It felt like he was inside my mind. Like he could just…peel it open if he wanted. How could we kill something like that?"
Ren swallowed, leaning back so she wouldn't feel cornered. He rested his hands on his knees, palms facing her—still, open, harmless. He took a moment to think on it.
'How we killed Nocstella?'
Images of the horrors came back to him. The pain he had gone through to take her out.
"We've done it before, we'll do it again. An overseer is an overseer..."
"Overseer…" She repeated, voice small. "Is that what he is? That man?"
"Yes...he is." He answered. "And the one before him...Nocstella, was almost the same."
"Noc…stella…" She repeated, tasting the word like it was poison.
Ren's tongue pressed against the back of his teeth, jaw clenching. His eyes drifted to the rain-blurred window again.
"She was an Overseer too," He answered. "She would crawl into your mind and tell you to give in to her. She controlled over her own land, just like this man is over this city."
Eva turned her face away, biting down on her trembling. The world she came to in was far larger and far more terrifying than she could grasp.
"…Are there more?" She finally asked. "More like the two you speak of?"
"Yes."
"Then how many more are there?"
"I assume there are two more..."
Her voice went thinner, barely audible. "…And you want to kill them?"
Ren didn't immediately confirm.
"If we don't, no one will. There isn't another option." Ren stated in a firm tone. "There are still others that still exist. That still suffer from these Overseer's reigns. And we can change that."
"You...said we've killed one of them before. How did that really happen?"
"Because I'm cursed..."
Eva blinked, confusion momentarily overpowering her fear.
"Cursed…?"
"That's all you need to know for now."
"It sounds like it was you," She whispered. "You're the one who defeated that…that Overseer. Not me. I can't even remember who I was before now. How could I possibly be of any use?"
"You were..." Ren said with a smile. "You were there with me."
"No...no, that can't be right. I can barely breathe without shaking. I can't even look out the window without feeling sick to my stomach. How could I fight anything? Let alone...a god."
"...Exist." Ren paused for a moment. "Existing in their world is rebellion enough. When you don't give in...that's how you fight back. You're strong, Eva. Just believe that yourself..."
Eva looked down at the floor.
"And for the Overseers...they aren't gods. They're tyrants who only exist only to take."
Ren stood to his feet, the wooden floor creaking under his weight.
"Eva..." He looked down at her. "The weakest thing someone can do is take from another."
Her head lifted, ink-filled eyes widening—not fully understanding yet, but listening.
"Anyone can steal. Anyone can wound. That's not strength at all." Ren said in a quiet voice. "Overseers only know how to take. It doesn't make them powerful...It makes them cowards."
Ren slowly extended a hand toward her.
"We have a chance to free these people under them. To stop their torment. Maybe even undo what has already been taken. But I can't do this alone."
She looked up at Ren's outstretched hand, her expression fractured and raw.
"You're asking me…" Her voice cracked, "…to stand against an Overseer?"
"I'm asking you," Ren said, "To walk at my side again."
With a shaky exhale—Eva lifted her hand. It hovered in the air, trembling violently, like she wasn't sure she deserved to take his. Then finally, her fingers touched his palm.
Ren closed his hand around hers with careful, deliberate gentleness.
Ren lifted her slowly, guiding her weight as she rose. Her legs wobbled the moment she tried to stand, knees knocking together. For a second she pitched forward, and Ren instinctively placed his free hand at her back to steady her. She gripped his arm, clinging like the ground itself was unreliable. Finally upright, she pressed her free hand to her chest.
"I'll walk with you," She whispered. "If you'll have me…I'll be at your side."