Glass memory

Venu surprises me.

He's never been much for talking unless it's to argue. But tonight, when we make camp beneath a low-hanging pipe lattice and the fire's just embers, he sits beside Sira without armor. No jokes. No heat. Just tired eyes and a crumpled ration bar in hand.

"I used to fight for food," he says.

Sira tilts her head. "What?"

He doesn't look at her. "In my old tribe. You don't win, you don't eat. Didn't matter if you were young or scared or bleeding. Weakness meant nothing."

Silence stretches long.

"I learned to strike first. Be loud. Be certain. Even when I wasn't."

Sira doesn't rush to answer. She just nods slowly.

"I'm sorry," she says.

He shrugs. "I'm not looking for sympathy."

"I didn't give you that. I gave you truth."

Something shifts in him. Not a break. But maybe a breath.

"Everyone says Kaia's the strong one," he says. "But I see you. The way you hold people without ever raising your voice."

She looks away. "Sometimes I wish I could raise it. Maybe then people would actually hear me."

Venu smirks. "I hear you."

Their eyes meet. And something clicks.

Not fireworks. Not chaos.

Just quiet understanding that might become more.

The next morning, Maika sees them sitting close, whispering. Not laughing, not touching — but close enough to send a signal.

She doesn't say anything.

Until she does.

"I'm done," she snaps, voice sharp enough to slice steel.

Everyone turns.

She throws her pack against the wall. "I'm done trying to hold this group together. Done pretending like I'm not watching everything fall apart."

"Maika—" I start.

"No," she cuts me off. "First it's you, Kaia. Acting like a dictator with a bleeding heart. Then Sira starts swapping sides like trust is a game. And now Venu?"

Venu raises an eyebrow. "I didn't know my friendships needed your permission."

She rounds on him. "You fight me at every turn, and now you get cozy with Sira? You're a walking contradiction."

Sira steps forward. "This isn't about me."

"Isn't it?" Maika laughs. "You act like you're above it all, but you pick favorites. You pick him."

Ajay shifts behind us. Just a glance. Just enough.

"And you," Maika turns. "You're always clinging. Always trailing behind like we owe you something for being quiet."

Ajay flinches. "I—"

"No," she says. "I'm tired. Of all of you."

The air crackles.

I step between them. "Enough."

Maika glares at me. "Fix it then, Kaia. If you can."

I nod. "We will. But not by pretending we're fine."

I turn to the group. "We stop chasing shadows for now. We fix us first. If we can't stand together, we have no right trying to fix anyone else."

No one speaks.

They don't need to. The silence is agreement.

Later, I find Aerith sitting alone at the far end of the camp, sharpening a tool in the dim firelight.

"We're taking a pause," I tell him. "We need time to come back together before we move forward."

He nods slowly. "That's wise."

I look at him for a long moment. "I need to know you're with us. Not just on the same path. With us."

His eyes flicker. "You have my word."

But something about the way he says it makes my skin crawl.

And I don't know why.

To be continued…