The fire had dimmed, glowing embers casting long shadows across the ruins of the manor. Laughter still lingered in the air, though it had quieted into comfortable silence.

Elara stood, brushing off the dust from her long coat. The circles under her eyes were darker than before, and even as she smiled at the others, her gaze looked distant, like it was still sifting through data, piecing together some unfathomable equation in her mind.

"I should get back," she said, pushing a loose strand of hair behind her ear. "I've already been away from my research longer than I intended…"

"Shocking," Nadya murmured. "She's been here the whole time and still mentally at her lab."

Elara gave her a tired glare, but didn't deny it.

Kai tilted his head, watching her more closely now. She had seemed absent-minded most of the night, nodding along to jokes, sipping on tea, but rarely joining the conversation unless spoken to directly. Her mind was clearly elsewhere. He didn't blame her. After everything they'd seen in her lab, there was no way she wasn't racing toward another discovery.

Still, she looked relieved as her eyes swept over them all. "I'm just… glad you're all okay. I really didn't expect you to come out here, but now that you're here, maybe it's best you stay."

She glanced around the quiet valley, where the ruins stood peacefully under the night sky. "No one in their right mind wanders into the Valley of Beasts. Even fewer people can make it up here. It's dangerous terrain with unpredictable threats. So ironically, it's probably the safest place for you all to lie low. Iancu doesn't mind, right?"

She turned to the pale, eccentric man seated on a large moss-covered stone. He gave a theatrical bow of his head, his hair swaying.

"I would be overjoyed to have such delightful guests," he said, grinning with that unnerving, too-wide smile. "It's been too long since I've had company that could string together a conversation."

Kai laughed, resting back against a broken pillar. "He might look like a walking corpse with a tea addiction," he said, flicking his chin toward Iancu, "but don't be fooled. He'd give any of us a run for our money; he certainly did for me and didn't even seem to be trying. Even Takeshi might find him a challenge."

That drew a chorus of surprised noises - Isaac's half-choked laugh, Lenny's "No way," and even Sven's raised brow.

Takeshi, of course, said nothing. He sat near the fire, arms folded and back straight, as if meditating. But at Kai's comment, he gave the faintest of nods.

No arrogance. No smug grin. Just a quiet, unwavering acknowledgement.

That somehow said more than words ever could.

"Hey, hey," Nadya said, narrowing her eyes at Kai, "you're not recruiting another weird mutant into this group, are you?"

"Hey!" Lenny sat up straighter, a look of mock offence on his scaly face. "You talking about me?"

Everyone burst into laughter again, including Lenny, though he gave Kai a playful punch in the shoulder.

Kai, grinning, looked over at Iancu. "Well? Interested?"

'It wouldn't hurt to have someone as strong as him with us, even if he is crazy. It's not like we're the sanest of people either. Plus, I'm sure we haven't seen the full extent of his abilities.'

But Iancu shook his head gently. "I appreciate the thought, but… this manor is my home. The outside world isn't for me anymore."

He reached into his coat and pulled out a delicate-looking parasol, idly spinning it between his fingers.

"Maybe if Elara ever finds a way to let me walk in daylight without turning to ash, I'll reconsider. Until then, someone needs to keep the beasts in check out here."

It was true, the Valley of Beasts would become the spawning point of the creatures that would sweep over the city and even the country if it weren't for him. He was also helping Elara with capturing beasts for her to experiment on or attempt to tame, in return for her efforts in curing his condition.

There was a quiet understanding between them all after that. Not every mutant sought freedom or had ambitions. Some were keepers of the forgotten, guardians of the wild.

Eventually, Elara bid them goodnight, hoping back onto her winged beasts. Her silhouette vanished in the air not long after. Kai doubted she'd sleep. Her mind didn't rest, and if her expression was anything to go by, she was close to some kind of breakthrough.

Not that he could judge her. He wasn't much better.

As the night stretched on, one by one, the others dozed off - Nadya curled up with her coat as a blanket, Sven snoring lightly beside Iancu's beast that seemed to like him, and Isaac leaning against the wall, muttering something in his sleep about giant dogs. Even Takeshi rested, still in that upright meditative pose, like a statue that only pretended to sleep.

But Kai… couldn't.

He sat on a stone wall, legs dangling off the edge, overlooking the silent valley. His pack lay beside him, open, a half-empty cigarette carton in his hand. He lit another one, the soft glow illuminating his face in orange.

He exhaled smoke and stared into the night.

'I've slept in worse places. Slept in that damned cell with shackles on. Slept on a branch of a tree in the cold mountains near Nadya's town. Hell, I've slept beside Nadya herself even with her snoring.'

But tonight… he just couldn't.

His body was tired, sure. But his mind wouldn't switch off. Not with the things he was thinking about. Not with what he was planning.

He took another drag, then looked down at the empty carton.

"Tch." He laughed quietly to himself. "I really am becoming an addict."

With a low sigh, he crushed the packet in one hand and tossed it to the side.

"Not that they'll kill me," he muttered aloud, eyes scanning the moonlit trees. "I've recovered from much, much worse."

The fire had dimmed to faint embers. Around him, his companions slept peacefully.

But Kai? He wasn't planning to rest.

Not tonight.

Because while they waited for the world to stop spinning, while they hid and recovered…

Kai had something he needed to do.

And he was pretty sure...

He'd have to do it alone.

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.