The words came like a wave of motivation. With every shout of encouragement, her strength seemed to grow. The men cheered as they watched the tribe's newest member, even if only temporary, lift the wooden bench press with rocks fastened to its sides.
Elisa controlled her breathing with every lift. Sweat ran from her forehead to the edge of the fabric that covered her chest. She lowered the bench press and, teeth clenched with effort, raised it again, letting out a shout.
"Fifty!"
Like a victor after a competition, the men lifted her and placed her on their broad shoulders, clapping in an almost musical rhythm.
Far from all that celebration, a figure entered the caves of Renkatas, crossing the darkness and following the scent of the sea to locate the destination she intended to reach.
When her eyes met the ocean, it was possible to see a female figure sitting at the edge of the cliff, swinging her feet against the wind. She felt the splashes of water that struck the stone wall and reached her nails. Noticing the approach, she slightly turned her face, brushing her hand against her ear and making the earring chime with a soothing sound.
"Oh, my dear, did you come to visit your father, or are you going to enjoy this beautiful view with me?"
"Sorry, Loren, but I choose the first option."
She brought a hand to her chest.
"But when possible, I can get some meat for us to eat together. Would you like that?"
"A promise is a promise, girl."
As she drew closer, Shaphira watched the sea with a certain melancholy in her gaze. She crouched down, letting her tail relax on the ground.
"May I ask you something?"
"Of course. Let out the doubt that is trapped in your heart, my angel."
Loren replied with a welcoming smile. Shaphira crossed her arms over her knees, rested her face against her own skin, and murmured, loud enough to be heard.
"In that place, we went through very complicated things. Elisa drifted far from him, and he seems even more distant. I feel out of place watching a relationship that seems to endlessly repeat a cycle of confusion, disappointment, and failed attempts to pull away. Even so, there is always something that brings them close again."
She let out a sound through her nose, like a sigh, before forming the question that troubled her.
"I wanted to know how you see Slady. Before Elisa and I arrived here, how did he behave? How was he with the people of this place? Is there anything you can tell me that might help me understand him better?"
Loren looked away toward the sea, pondering. Her fingers caressed a few spheres tied into her hair, as if searching for old memories.
After a silence that seemed to stretch beyond time, she turned back to Shaphira, taking on a more serious tone.
"To be honest, I met him suddenly. He appeared in our land, showed himself to be very powerful compared to the other young men here, and always returned to where he came from, Rykenzon. One day, curious, I decided to look for him to understand him better, to seek some connection."
She leaned against the wall, placing her hands on her waist, more relaxed.
"And he seemed lost. As if, when trying to explain who he was, he became entangled in something even he did not understand. If I had to sum up my impression, I would say I saw a man marked by a catastrophic event, someone who no longer knows which path to follow."
"That is a good theory."
Shaphira rested her chin between her fingers and tilted her head slightly.
"I know a woman who, despite my confused memories, I see as a mother. Even so, I feel that I know her very little. Like her, many people who knew Slady seem confused about the past, as if their sense of what is real had been affected."
With each sentence, she seemed to draw closer to a conclusion.
"The last time I saw her before this confusion was when she entered an Inférius much larger alongside a colleague of ours. After that, not only this colleague, but she herself returned different, as if she had witnessed something equally catastrophic."
Shaphira's ears rose, standing upright, as if a light had turned on in her mind. She stood up immediately, ready to leave.
"Sorry to end the conversation so soon, but thank you for this moment."
She leaped as a bridge of sand formed over the sea, running at impressive speed toward Rykenzon. Loren, surprised by the sudden action, felt a silent satisfaction at having helped a confused mind. She leaned forward again to watch the sea.
"I think there is more depth to this hole, Shaphira. Seek the answers, and if you can, gossip with me afterward."
She murmured, with a small smile.
After a long run, faithfully accompanied by the Renkai Creatures, Shaphira reached the coast. She cupped her hands around her mouth and shouted.
"SLADY! I KNOW YOU ARE HERE!"
The only response was silence.
She began to walk through the forest, subduing some Renkai Creatures and ordering them to help with the search. After several minutes, her gaze settled on the temple she had previously been unable to investigate.
Now was the opportunity.
As she descended, her foot sank into a plate that activated. From the ceiling, snakes emerged, trying to bite her. She struck them and imposed her dominance.
Each step triggered a new trap. Arrows cut through the air toward her, blades tried to wound her, and flames erupted beneath her feet.
With great effort, she survived.
When she crossed the old door, she saw a fallen figure, wrapped in his own blood. A scream escaped her throat.
"Slady!"
Without caring about the liquid staining her hands, she held him in her arms, feeling the body heavier than usual.
"Tell me you did not do something stupid, please."
She pressed her ears to his chest.
No heartbeat.
"No…"
Her breathing became irregular as she held him tightly against herself. The doubts dissolved, replaced by emotions that overflowed through her eyes.
Then, abruptly, the body began to melt into liquid. Everything slipped through her fingers. She stepped back, her heart racing. The garments dissolved along with the flesh, merging into the ground.
"What happened to you?"
She tried to dig into the ground with her sharp nails, but found only dead snakes.
A presence began to form behind her, rising from the ground like a specter. Slowly, Shaphira turned her body. Her eyes widened, and her hands pressed into the sand as she recognized the scene.
It was him, but something had changed. The body was larger, more intimidating. Veins pulsed all over his body, now far more muscular, as if forced to sustain a power beyond what he had earned.
Shaphira stood and stepped closer, her fingers almost touching the imposing chest.
"Father… tell me you are fine. That it was just an accident. Or a bad joke."
His hand touched her face, almost the size of her head. Something, however, made her seek his eyes.
The voice was not the same. Neither was the gentleness.
With a hoarse laugh, he replied.
"My dear… your father is not here."