Episode 169 - Facing my past

Episode 169 - Facing my past
Joe's flame suddenly ignited, intense enough to paint the walls a restless orange.

Joe - Shit, Ness… look!

I followed his gaze. The glass trembled, and beyond, the city lights blurred. For an instant, the horizon transformed into something else: stone towers, endless forests, silvery light filtering through the air. Regum.

Then it was gone, replaced by the familiar hum of traffic. My breath caught, my chest tightened.

Ness - You saw it too?

Joe nodded, his jaw clenched, his flame still burning, as if he couldn't extinguish it.

Joe - It's not just filtering through anymore. It's breaking through.

The silence grew heavier and more expectant. I returned to the desk, where the letter lay. The faded ink glowed faintly, as if alive, as if waiting. My fingers trembled as I touched it, and for an instant, new words spilled onto the page: “Trust the path.” I gasped, pulling my hand back. Joe stared at me, his flame burning brighter.

Joe - Tobias. Luke.

The room seemed to breathe with us, the air heavy with their presence. Outside, the wind carried a whisper that wasn't the city's, something calling to us. I pressed my hand to my chest; tears stung my eyes.

Ness - They haven't left. I told you they haven't left.

Joe - I know, Ness. But don't change the subject.

Ness - What are you talking about?

Joe - Enough already. You always want to adapt to the situation and see the good in what's happening so it benefits you, but you have to stop. You have to take advantage of being back to confront your past.

I swallowed hard, looking at Joe, who was staring at me with a sad expression. The flame in his hand quickly died out as I just stood there, facing reality.

Ness - I can't...

Joe - What do you mean you can't? Go to your parents and tell them the truth, how they made you feel all this time. Go and punch James, go and tell your friends how good they were to you.

Ness - Joe, I...

Joe - No, Ness. If Regum is calling us back, if this isn't over... then you have to make the most of this time. You can't go back to Regum as someone who's running away, but as someone who's ready to continue their life there.

His words pierced me, sharper than any creature I'd faced in Regum. I wanted to argue, to tell him the past didn't matter, that only Tobias and Luke mattered now. But the truth weighed more than my denial.

Ness - You don't understand... if I face them, if I face everything, I'll have to admit who I am. And I don't know if I can.

Joe approached; his flame had died down, but his presence burned just as brightly.

Joe - You already admitted it in Regum. Every time you fought, every time you stood by me, you showed who you are. Why hide it now?

Silence hung over me, thick and suffocating. Outside, the wind rattled the windowpane again, and for a moment the city lights curled into silver threads. I thought I heard Tobias's voice, faint but insistent: "Together." I closed my eyes; tears streamed down my face.

Ness - If they call us back… then maybe they're buying us time. Do you think they're buying us time to finish what we started here?

Joe clenched his jaw, but nodded slowly.

Joe - Yes. And we have to use it. We'll tie up loose ends. And when Regum opens the door again, we'll be ready.

The letter on the desk gleamed once more, faint words seeping onto the page telling us to trust the path.

I reached out, my chest aching, my hand brushing the ink.

Ness - Tobias… Luke… they're waiting for us.

The room seemed to breathe with us, the air thick with promise and fear. Regum was forcing his way in, but so was the truth we'd avoided for so long. The truth I've been running from. The silence weighed on me like a tide, heavy and relentless. I could almost feel Regum breathing through the cracks of this world, his forests stretching to the city's horizon, his whispers filtering through the hum of traffic. But beneath that, another truth gnawed at me: the one Joe had forced out.

Ness - I've been running my whole life... First from them, then from myself. Regum gave me a place to belong.

Joe's gaze softened, though his jaw remained clenched.

Joe - Then stop hiding. If Tobias and Luke are waiting, if Regum calls us back, we can't go as ghosts. We have to go as ourselves.

The letter glowed again, the words "Trust the path" gleaming faintly before fading into silence. My chest ached, my breath ragged. I turned to the window, where the city lights shone silver once more. For a moment, I thought I saw Tobias's silhouette reflected in the glass, and Luke's serene figure beside him. My pulse quickened, but when I blinked, they were gone.

Ness - They're buying us time. Time to finish what we started, yes, that's it...

I whispered, more to myself than to say anything to Joe, who approached, his hand firmly on my shoulder.

Joe - Then let's use it. Tie up the loose ends. And when the door opens again... we'll walk through it without fear.

The room seemed to exhale, the air thick with promise and fear. Regum was forging a path, but so was the truth I had buried. And for the first time, I knew: before I could return, I had to face the world I had left behind. I turned to Joe.

Ness - Are you sure you want to go back, Joe?

Joe - At first I wasn't sure I wanted to be in that place, to be honest; then we were told that we had to stay in that place and fulfill a prophecy we never asked for, with powers we never asked for.

Ness - Yes...

Joe - But anyway, when we spent time with Tobias and Luke, with the Regumnians we saved, the nymphs, all the creatures... Regum felt like home every time I woke up... More than home ever was.

His words hung in the air, heavy yet warm, like embers that refused to die. I stared at him, watching his flame fade, but his eyes still burned with the memory of Regum.

Ness - More than home ever was…

I repeated softly, as the truth took hold of me. I felt a tightness in my chest, torn between the pain of this world and the pull of the other. I turned to the window. The city lights flickered silver again, bending toward towers and forests that shouldn't be there. I pressed my hand against the glass, whispering to the night.

To be continued..