Vale's eyes widened as he stared at Korin, the grin on his friend's face doing little to reassure him. For a brief moment, neither of them moved, but then, without warning, Korin leaned back and released his grip on the rope entirely. His massive frame hung suspended in the air for the smallest fraction of a second, their gazes locked, before gravity claimed him and he dropped.
'Did he really just jump?'
The thought barely had time to settle before Korin was already descending, his long brown hair whipping violently in the rushing wind. Below, the people of the slums, children and adults alike, looked up in alarm and confusion, their attention drawn to the falling figure. Then he hit the ground.
The impact rang out like thunder.
Stone fractured beneath his feet, cracks splintering across the worn road as his knees bent slightly to absorb the force. A cloud of dust rose around him, briefly obscuring his form before settling just enough to reveal him straightening again, completely intact. He rolled his shoulders once, as if shaking off nothing more than a minor inconvenience, then tilted his head back up toward the sky.
"Come on!" he called, his voice carrying easily. "You can handle it, trust me!"
Vale stared down at him, a nervous grin tugging at his lips despite the tension coiling in his chest. The height wasn't absurd, thirty meters, maybe, but it was more than enough to kill an ordinary person outright. He exhaled slowly, glancing up at Tachyon for a brief second as if seeking reassurance from the massive creature, then shook his head.
"Yeah… sure," he muttered.
Before he could overthink it, he stepped back and let himself fall.
The rush was immediate. Air tore past him as his body dropped at a brutal pace, his clothes snapping in the wind as gravity pulled him downward. He adjusted instinctively, angling his legs beneath him, forcing his body into alignment as he focused on the approaching ground.
'I'll be fine.'
The thought was formed with less confidence and more commitment.
The street surged up to meet him.
Impact followed soon after.
A sharp boom echoed through the slums as Vale hit the stone, the force buckling his knees before the rest of his body followed, collapsing forward onto the ground. Pain flared through him, not enough to cripple him, but enough to remind him exactly how reckless that had been. He lay there for a moment, staring up at the sky, breath coming fast and uneven as he tried to steady himself.
Above him, the basket still hovered.
He considered staying down a little longer.
"You might want to move," Korin said casually.
Vale turned his head, frowning. "Why-"
He didn't finish.
Korin simply pointed upward.
Vale followed the gesture, and his eyes widened instantly. The massive basket had been released. It plummeted toward him at terrifying speed, its shadow swallowing the ground beneath it.
"Seriously?!"
He rolled hard to the side, pushing himself up with whatever strength he could muster before launching forward. The moment he cleared the space, the basket slammed into the ground behind him with a deafening crash, stone cracking under the weight as dust and debris erupted outward.
Vale hit the ground again, this time on his stomach, breathing hard.
"That," he said between breaths, his voice thick with sarcasm, "was a great warning."
Korin laughed, completely unbothered, and extended a hand. "Relax. I would've caught it if things went wrong."
Vale grabbed his hand and pulled himself up, rolling his eyes. "Yeah, I'd rather not test that."
As they regained their footing, Tachyon circled overhead before descending in a controlled glide, landing a short distance away. The ground trembled slightly beneath the creature's weight as it settled near an open space beside a large, weathered statue.
Vale's attention shifted immediately.
The statue stood tall despite its condition, its metal surface dulled by grime and time. The figure depicted a man of clear importance, regal posture, commanding presence, but neglect had stripped it of any grandeur it might once have had.
"What's that?" Vale asked, nodding toward it.
Korin glanced over, expression turning mildly uncertain. "If I remember right, it's the one hundred and twenty-third king of Irea," he said. "Why is it out here instead of somewhere respectable? No idea."
Vale stepped closer, studying it. Something about it felt… off. Not in an obvious way, but enough to linger at the edge of his thoughts. Before he could dwell on it further, however, movement around him pulled his attention away.
People were gathering.
Children stood at a distance, watching him with wide, cautious eyes. Their clothes were worn, some torn beyond repair, their expressions caught somewhere between curiosity and fear. Vale followed their gaze down to himself, his weapons, his stance, the presence he carried, and understood immediately.
"…Yeah," he muttered. "That's not helping."
He reached back and pulled his spear free, driving its base into the ground with a firm motion. Darkness curled around it almost instantly, shadow coiling outward as Shade emerged, his form expanding into a towering silhouette of living mist.
The reaction that followed was immediate.
Several children flinched, stepping back, but they didn't run.
Vale turned toward them, forcing a lighter tone. "Hey," he called, gesturing toward the shadow. "He won't hurt you. Go on, try talking to him."
Then he stepped away, leaving Shade there.
The shadow remained still at first, crimson eyes narrowing as he looked after Vale, something unreadable flickering beneath the surface. Then, a small hand touched him.
Shade's gaze dropped.
A young child stood there, no older than seven, staring up at him with bright, unafraid eyes. Another approach. Then another. Slowly, cautiously, the distance closed as curiosity overcame hesitation. None of them spoke, they simply observed, circling closer, drawn to the strange, imposing figure.
After a moment, Shade lowered himself slightly, his posture shifting, not any less imposing than before, but… less distant.
Vale watched only briefly before turning away.
Work needed to be done.
At the basket, Korin was already distributing supplies, handing out food and essentials as quickly as he could. Adults gathered now as well, forming a loose crowd, men, women, the elderly, all worn down by hardship but moving with quiet urgency.
Vale joined in without hesitation.
He worked efficiently, passing out goods, keeping pace with the steady flow of people. There was little time for conversation; need outweighed everything else. Faces blurred together, tired, grateful, desperate. The condition of the slums spoke for itself.
Within ten minutes, the basket was nearly empty.
Then one final figure approached.
Vale noticed him immediately.
The man was tall, broad-shouldered, despite the wear of time, his body marked by countless scars. His hair, once brown, was streaked heavily with grey, and his skin carried the rough tone of someone who had spent years exposed to harsh conditions.
But what held Vale's attention,
Was the man his arm?
Or rather, the lack of one.
The man's right side ended at the shoulder, clean but unforgiving. No prosthetic. No replacement. Just absence.
Vale stilled slightly, his gaze lingering a second too long.
The man noticed.
Slowly, he lifted his head, meeting Vale's eyes with a dull, exhausted stare. There was no curiosity in it, no warmth. Just something worn thin by time.
"What are you looking at?" he asked, his voice rough, stripped of emotion.