Thal sat silently at one of the makeshift tables in the corner of the inn, now a shelter for the survivors of the battle. His eyes were distant, watching the people move about, trying to piece their lives back together. The flicker of hope amidst the devastation unsettled him more than it soothed. His body ached, but it wasn't from wounds. It was from the burden he carried the argument still echoing in his mind.
Kael's words. His accusations. Lucian. Quincy. The prophecy.
The weight of it all pressed in around him like a closing fist.
The sound of footsteps approached, but Thal didn't look up. Not until the boots stopped across from him and a familiar presence settled into the chair with a weary exhale no smirk, no swagger, just silence... Perhaps it was the aftermath of the battle or the tension that had settled between them after their conversation earlier.
Without waiting for an invitation, Kael set a bottle of liquor and two cups on the table, but his movements were slower, more deliberate. His usual playfulness was gone, replaced by something more subdued. He didn't look directly at Thal, not yet.
"Didn't think you'd be here," Kael said quietly. "Didn't think I'd be either, after everything I said.", his voice carrying a rare uncertainty, as if unsure whether he should be here at all.
Thal didn't move to reach for it immediately. His hands were clasped in front of him, and his posture remained rigid as he stared at the bottle. "I'm not in the mood," he said quietly, his voice distant, as if trying to push the weight of everything from his shoulders.
Kael sighed, then poured both cups anyway. "I didn't come to drink," he added, voice low. "But it's easier than apologizing.". He slid one cup toward Thal, but there was no grin now just a tired exhale as he leaned back, letting the quiet settle. "Come on, Thal. You've earned it. After everything we've been through, you can't honestly tell me you're not thirsty."
Thal met Kael's gaze, his expression unreadable for a moment. He was tired physically, mentally, and emotionally but Kael was right. He'd earned a drink. It wasn't as if it would solve anything, but for now, maybe it would numb the edges of his thoughts, if only for a brief while.
Sighing, he reached for the cup, taking a slow sip. The burn of the alcohol filled his throat, and for a second, he let himself relax. The tension in his shoulders eased slightly, though the nagging thoughts remained in the back of his mind.
Kael watched him drink, the silence between them stretching. When he spoke again, his voice was softer. "I meant what I said, Thal. But maybe not how I said it. I've been thinking... about everything. About you. About Quincy. About what we are.". He leaned forward, watching Thal with that knowing smirk. "You've been so caught up in your head, haven't you?" he said, his voice soft but firm. "You've been pushing everyone away, thinking about everything that's happened. But that doesn't mean you need to shoulder all of it alone."
Thal's hand tightened around the cup, but he didn't respond right away. Kael wasn't wrong. He had been carrying the weight of the world on his shoulders for far too long. But it wasn't that easy to let go, not with everything that was happening around them.
Kael leaned back, his eyes never leaving Thal's face. "Look, I'm not going to pretend I understand everything you're going through. But you don't need to isolate yourself. You've got me. And the rest of us, too. You don't have to take the burden of the whole world on your own."
Thal stayed silent, staring at the drink in front of him. After a moment, he set the cup down with a soft thud, then looked Kael dead in the eyes. "I'm not doing this because I want to," Thal said, his voice low but steady. "I didn't ask for this responsibility. But it's not just about the wars. It's about what comes next. If we don't do something about the Kruul King, everything we fought for everything we've sacrificed will be for nothing."
Kael's smirk faltered for just a moment, and he leaned forward slightly, his tone serious now. "I get it, Thal. But there's something I'm not sure you're seeing. The war against the Kruul isn't just about saving people. It's about power. The Nephilim don't get involved in these kinds of conflicts for a reason. We were never meant to pick sides."
Thal looked away, his gaze hardening. "Sometimes, Kael, the lines between right and wrong aren't so clear. Sometimes, we have to make hard choices, even if they're not what we were supposed to do."
Kael paused, taking in Thal's words, the weight of them settling heavily in the air between them. For a moment, neither of them spoke. Then, with a sigh, Kael picked up his own cup and raised it slightly, as if offering a silent toast.
"To hard choices," he said, his voice softer now, a hint of something more serious beneath the playful edge.
Thal nodded, the ghost of a smile flickering on his lips as he lifted his cup in return.
They drank in silence, the quiet between them carrying an unspoken understanding, a recognition that they were both walking paths that might never lead them back to where they started. But for now, they had each other's backs no matter what came next.
As the night wore on, the two Nephilim continued to drink in silence, the weight of the day's battles lingering between them. The flickering light from the fire in the corner cast long shadows across the room, but it was the quiet hum of the city around them someone outside was sweeping broken glass from stone, a cart creaked slowly down the street, and the low murmur of voices carried through the cracks in the shutters survivors picking up the pieces, mending wounds that seemed to fill the air with an uneasy calm.
Kael took another swig from his cup, letting the liquor burn down his throat, then leaned back in his chair, glancing at Thal. There was something that had been bothering him, something he'd been mulling over in the back of his mind since their conversation earlier. He couldn't help but feel like Thal was... changing. Something about him had shifted, and Kael couldn't quite put his finger on it.
Finally, after a long silence, Kael broke the quiet. "You've changed, Thal," he said, his voice uncharacteristically serious. "You used to be... so focused on keeping things at arm's length. Detached, you know? But now? You're getting too close. To the mortals. To them." He motioned vaguely toward the direction of the city. "Even with Na'reth. I don't get it. What happened?"
Thal's gaze flickered to Kael, his eyes narrowed slightly, as if contemplating the question. He leaned back in his chair and exhaled slowly, the weight of the conversation hanging in the air. After a moment, he set his cup down gently on the table, meeting Kael's eyes with an intensity that was rare for him.
"You don't see it, do you?" Thal's voice was low, almost thoughtful. "You've changed too, Kael. You've started caring about the city, about Kalrith, and especially about Na'reth. You don't even notice it, but it's there."
Kael frowned, opening his mouth to counter, but Thal didn't give him the chance.
"Don't try to deny it," Thal continued, his tone firm. "You can talk about the Harbinger all you want, but the truth is you're invested now. In them. In this place. You care about the people here, even if you won't admit it to yourself." His gaze softened for a moment, almost a hint of something deeper. "And you care about Na'reth, whether you want to or not."
Kael's expression tightened, the smirk fading from his lips. He shifted uncomfortably, his mind racing as he tried to formulate a response. "I'm here to stop the Harbinger, Thal. To protect these people from what's coming. That's all. It's not about... about getting close to them."
Thal shook his head, an almost sad smile tugging at the corners of his lips. "You don't have to care about their feelings, Kael. But you do." His voice was quieter now, as if the words carried a weight that had been buried deep for a long time. "You've gotten close to Na'reth. It's obvious. You're not fooling anyone."
Kael's hand tightened around his cup, his jaw setting in frustration, but Thal's words cut through him like a blade. His thoughts turned inward for a moment, trying to reconcile the parts of himself that had been pushed to the side for so long. He couldn't deny it, not entirely.
He had started caring about this city, about the people in it, and yes, about Na'reth. But that didn't mean he had to admit it, did it? Was it really that simple? Could he really let himself get so involved with them? The lines between what was right and wrong had never felt blurrier.
Kael's voice was quieter now, almost reluctant. "I just... I never thought it would be like this. I never thought I'd care about any of them."
Thal leaned forward slightly, his eyes steady, watching Kael closely. "That's the thing, Kael. You never planned for it, but you care." he brought his cup closer to his mouth "Maybe that's not such a bad thing."
Kael's gaze dropped to the table for a moment, his fingers running along the rim of his cup. He knew Thal was right, in a way but it was hard for him to accept. The Nephilim were supposed to be beyond all of this. Detached. Observers, not participants.
Here he was there was no denying the changes, no denying the way his heart had shifted without him even realizing it. Maybe it was because of Na'reth, or the battles they had fought together or maybe it was the people in this city who had reminded him, in their quiet strength and resilience, of something long buried.
Kael took a deep breath, meeting Thal's gaze once more, a hint of uncertainty in his eyes. "Maybe you're right. Maybe... I'm not as detached as I thought I was."
Thal's smile was small, tired, but it was real. "None of us are," he said simply. And if they had changed if what made them Nephilim was shifting then maybe the war ahead would no longer be fought by cold immortals, but by those who had finally learned how to feel. He took another drink, quietly, the flicker of firelight dancing in his eyes. "And maybe that's exactly what's going to save us in the end."
Kael didn't respond immediately. He leaned back in his chair again, mulling over Thal's words. For the first time in a long while, he wasn't sure about the path ahead but one thing was certain the war with the Kruul, the fight against the Harbinger, and everything in between it wasn't just about the Nephilim anymore. It was about the people they had come to care for, in ways they hadn't anticipated.
Maybe that made all the difference.
As Kael sat there, mulling over their conversation, something started to click in his mind. One rises unshackled... The words echoed faintly from some half-forgotten passage, and for a heartbeat, he felt them settle over Thal like a mantle.. The words that Alinda, had spoken to him long ago came rushing back.
She had offered Thal, a Nephilim, a chance at something different a chance to break free from the rigid, cold ways of their kind. At the time, Kael had dismissed it as an attempt to make peace with mortals, a vain hope that Thal might soften the hard edges of their people but now, as he looked at Thal his old friend, the one who had always been the most detached, the most unaffected by the wars and struggles of mortals Kael began to understand.
Alinda hadn't just seen Thal as a powerful ally or a key figure in some political scheme. She had seen something else in him. She had seen potential... the potential to change, to evolve, to rewrite the rules of their existence.
Thal was one of the first to shift, to let the walls he had built around himself crumble, even if it had happened in subtle ways over the years.
Kael's brow furrowed as the realization struck him. Maybe it wasn't just Thal who had changed. Maybe this was the beginning of something bigger, something Alinda had been hoping for all along. Thal wasn't the first Nephilim to question the old ways, but he might have been the first to embrace the shift, to let the mortals in, to allow himself to care in ways that no Nephilim had done before.
"Is that what you wanted, Alinda?" Kael murmured to himself under his breath, still watching Thal in the flickering light. "To see him change the course of everything?"
Thal had always been one to defy convention, but now, it seemed as though the change was not just about breaking the Nephilim's old code but about evolving it entirely. Thal had become more than just an observer. He had become a protector, a participant in the mortal world, and someone who, for the first time in millennia, understood that to care wasn't a weakness it was a strength.
Kael leaned back in his chair, his mind racing. He hadn't even noticed until now how much Thal had shifted. The silence between them was no longer just exhaustion it was transformation, subtle but undeniable.
For a long time, Kael had watched Thal from a distance, unsure of what direction his old friend was taking. But now, in this flickering light, with the echoes of their conversation lingering in the space between words, Kael began to see the shape of something new forming in the ashes of the old. with thoughts of the past, of Alinda's vision for the Nephilim, and of what Thal's role in it all might truly be.
Alinda had known that the Nephilim could not continue to exist in the same way, disconnected from the world. Perhaps she had seen something in Thal long before Kael had.
He glanced over at Thal, who was quietly nursing his drink, the weight of the world on his shoulders despite the calm expression on his face. Thal had already taken the first steps had already changed in ways that Kael hadn't even noticed until now. He wasn't just a Nephilim anymore he was something else entirely. Something... mortal, in a sense.
"Maybe Alinda was right," Kael muttered softly, almost to himself. "Maybe we were meant to be more than just silent watchers. Maybe we were meant to be a part of this world, not apart from it."
It was a dangerous thought, one that went against everything they had ever been taught, but Kael couldn't shake it. He knew that the path Thal was on would change everything. The Nephilim were no longer the silent, distant. They were changing and that change might just be what saved them all in the end.
Thal, seemingly unaware of Kael's internal revelation, looked over at him with a knowing glint in his eyes. "You look like you're deep in thought, Kael. Everything alright?"
Kael took a deep breath, his gaze steady as he met Thal's eyes. "Just thinking," he said, a quiet smile tugging at the corners of his lips. "Maybe you were right. We've all changed more than we realize."
Thal's eyes softened for a moment before he nodded, a faint smile of his own gracing his features. "Maybe we have," he said simply.
The weight of the conversation hung between them, but for the first time in a long while, it felt like the future might hold something different for the Nephilim. Something more than just destruction, war, and cold detachment.
Maybe it was time for a new chapter.