Kael sat by the dying embers, staring into them as if they could offer answers he hadn't dared voice.
Ash sat a few paces away, back against the cave wall, arms folded over his staff, gaze distant.
Kael found himself asking, "Why did you come with me?"
Ash didn't look up. "You think I had a choice?"
"You did."
Ash sighed. "I saw you once in the ruins of Therin Vale. A man broken, standing over the body of a priest who had been summoning darkfire. You didn't run. You stayed. Buried him. Prayed."
Kael remembered. The fire. The silence afterward.
Ash continued, "I'd never seen anyone who looked more like death… but still fought like life mattered." He glanced over. "So yeah. I followed. Someone had to watch your back."
Kael gave a dry smile. "And Maren?"
At that, Ash chuckled, a rare sound.
"She robbed you, remember?"
Kael nodded. "Tried to take my heartsteel ring. Got caught."
"She didn't flinch even when you had a dagger to her throat. Said, 'If you don't need it, I do.'"
"She reminded me of someone I failed a long time ago."
Ash added, "She only stayed because Sarya offered her the last dried apple ration."
"Bribery always works," Kael murmured.
Ash nodded toward the sleeping tracker. "She stayed because she knew you weren't leading a war. You were walking into one. And none of us wanted to be left behind when it started."