Human cadets finally reached their barracks.
Alphael let go of his frail friend just long enough to unzip the flap of Fionn's tent. The moment it opened, something blurred past his peripheral vision.
"What the—?"
He looked back inside. Fionn was already at his desk, gulping from a flask like a man dying of thirst.
"Ptah! That's the good stuff!"
Wiping his mouth with the back of his hand, Fionn spun his chair to face Alphael.
"So, I've been wondering. Is Earth really all that amazing? The way my parents and you talk about it makes it seem like it's the perfect place to live in."
Alphael stepped further in, eyes tracing the cluttered tent.
"Compared to this place? Yeah, it is. I would trade anything for it."
Fionn rolled his eyes.
"There it is. Another comparison. You can't give me a straight answer."
"That is an answer. Anything is better than here—have you even seen it all?" Alphael shot back.
Fionn's eyes narrowed. His arms folded tightly across his chest.
"No! As you might imagine, I don't have the privilege of having my own home world as my birthright."
Alphael hesitated for a moment, then his eyes lit up.
"Then allow me to show you!"
He dug into his pocket and pulled out the relic of his old world — his phone.
Cracked and damaged but, still functional.
"I won't need signal for this."
He swiped and tapped at the screen, then turned it toward Fionn's face.
Every few seconds, another memory passed — landscapes, cities, people, dreams.
"This is it. The fantasy I want to return to!"
Fionn leaned forward, brows raising.
"And who's the red-haired woman I keep seeing?"
Alphael immediately pulled the phone back.
"My treasure from Earth… my mom."
Fionn's expression hardened. His tone went flat.
"So that's what your obsession is."
His eyes locked onto Alphael's.
"Then I have a question. What makes you think you can actually make it back? Not a single person has made it before. What makes you different, huh?"
Alphael's stance widened, his arms flailing in disbelief.
"What are you talking about! There has to be a way. I'll find that way!"
Fionn stood up, his voice sharp.
"Find a way? An average score in a dash doesn't exactly scream way-finder to me!" He jabbed a finger at Alphael.
"Tell me this — how far has Humanity explored Earth? How much has been charted?!"
Alphael's hands dropped. He gazed down. "All… all of it. We even have ways to track our movements all around the world at any time..."
Fionn threw his arms up.
"There! That! Your world is already charted! You've had no necessity to go into the unknown because you've never had to! Do you even know how much of the Axis has been explored?"
Alphael's voice trembled.
"I don't—"
"Fifteen percent! And that's allegedly!"
His voice thundered.
"Throughout all Axi history, only twelve percent of the world has ever been charted! The Frontier is incomprehensibly large, yes, but it's because of what lies there. And you think you'll just walk through it and find a way out? You can't see your mother if you're dead, now can you?"
Alphael's eyes widened, his teeth grinding.
"And so what if I do! If I'm too weak, I'll rebuild myself into something stronger! And I'll do it again and again until I make my way out!"
Fionn pressed further.
"And if you can't?"
Alphael's body burned with that familiar fire — that strange, convulsing energy under his skin.
"Then I can live with that! Knowing that I tried… and I'll build a place for us Humans to live peacefully."
Fionn took a step forward.
"And if you can? You're going to leave the rest of us? The ones who want to make it back? You haven't once brought up anyone but yourself."
Alphael's flame flared higher.
"Then fine! I'll take everyone else with me once I find that way! Even the people born here. Even you! I'll show you the beautiful fantasy that is Earth!"
Fionn's face softened, almost smiling.
"That's a good answer."
Alphael's jaw stayed tight.
"Right, whatever! If you're so interested in my goal, it's only right that you tell me yours! What's your aim here? What's your interest in the Frontier?"
"To conquer it!"
Fionn's eyes gleamed — stars behind his irises.
"I want to conquer and see all the Axis has to offer."
He raised his frail and pale hands, gazing into them.
"I want to prove to myself and the world that I'm strong despite my illness. I want to see it all — and best it!"
Alphael blinked, stunned.
"Huh? But why?"
Fionn darted to his desk, rummaging through a pile of monstrous tomes until he found a small, battered book.
He thrust it into Alphael's face.
It read: His Scarlet Majesty.
"To be like him! The king who bested every phenomenon! Cuno!"
Alphael leaned back.
"Assuming you overcome your illness, how would you even do all that when you wear that brown bandana?"
A crooked smile broke across Fionn's face.
"I could ask you the same thing."
The atmosphere turned into a thick miasma, filling the air with a choking silence.
Then both burst into laughter.
"Fine then. How about we destroy the Axis together?"
Fionn raised his fist.
Alphael looked at it for a beat, then raised his own.
"Yeah, sure! Just don't slow me down by twenty seconds or so!"
Their fists met softly before parting.
Fionn walked toward the flap.
"You seemed pretty confident about escaping. So what's your Mask's ability?"
Alphael turned.
"My Mask's what?"
Fionn's brow furrowed.
"Your Mask?"
Then it clicked. Fionn's eyes widened.
"You don't know what it is, do you? I reckon you don't know what Shroud is either, huh?"
Outside, a commotion stirred — Humans gathering at the end of the district.
"Seems like our next session is starting."
"What the hell is Shroud?" Alphael asked.
Fionn glanced over his shoulder, a grin curling under tired eyes.
"I guess we'll find out, won't we?"