Days flew by. Gareth and Jake fled, falling forward. The same routine every time: Run, eat, sleep, go in the mist, and run again.
It came to the point where Jake was unsure how often they did it. His exhaustion was not helping his failing memory. As every day, he tried to discuss with an increasingly moody Gareth. "So this place we're going to, where the mist is thickest, you've been there before?" An unimpressed blue eye glared at him. "Yes, I told you already." Jake sighed, "You told me you've been there before, you didn't tell me what the place is, and what happened when you were there. Is it linked to my father?" The topic of his father was one of the only things that helped the giant open up a bit. "Yes, your father lived there. I did too, for a while." The young man gently pushed further, " So, good memories?" Gareth's whisper was barely audible, "Yes, the best ones." His face was a mask of pain and grief.
Night came, signaling rest and recovery for Jake's tired feet. They ate in silence; the young man didn't think he would get any other word from Gareth that day. He was ready to let sleep take him when the gruff voice echoed in the night. "Jake, we need to hurry. We took too long already." Jake sat up, he saw the outline of the tall man near the fire, blue eyes glinting in the dark. The corrupted eye gave a sick little glow. The young man shivered upon seeing it. "It's getting worse," said Gareth. He waved a hand in front of his healthy eye and looked at Jake. "I'm losing sight in the other eye too." The thief echoed the sigh, "Then we hurry, no more zig-zagging the map." Gareth nodded, "We'll make our destination obvious to the hunters tracking us; we'll be lucky if this doesn't end in a fight." Jake lay on his back and watched the dim stars above. "It was always going to end in a fight, Gareth." The giant lay on his mattress, mimicking Jake, "I know."
The silence stretched, waiting for the next words. But none came. The silence spread its wings, sheltering the two men in its embrace. Jake felt himself drifting away. "Jake?" The silence froze; this was unusual. "Gareth?" answered the young man. The silence closed its wings and waited again. The tall man pondered awhile, "Why are you still here, Jake? You could flee, get away from the hunters." The thief thought about the questions seriously. "I think fleeing is not an option. The hunters will find me wherever I go." He hesitated, then added, "And you feel like family. I never had one, so I won't abandon the one I have found." Jake could see that Gareth's eyes were open, his jaw clenching and unclenching. "Thank you," whispered the giant with a constrained voice. Then they gave the stage to the silence.
Jake woke up in the dark, his body knew it was time. He slowly sat and started packing his mattress. Gareth was doing the same thing in parallel. They were efficient. A lot of practice made them perfect. They ate the leftovers from their dinner. Then they locked eyes with each other. Gareth gave the smallest of nods, Jake slightly winced as an answer. They took a synchronized deep breath and phased into the cold and silent pink world of the mist.
Swirls of pink danced around them, as if greeting old friends. Gareth sat on the ground, the tension in his face fading for a moment. Jake paced slowly through the area. He moved his arms in the mist and marveled for a while at the sensation of twirling ribbons on his skin. He played with the fog, letting his mind influence the direction of the mist. Then he looked at Gareth, and the small tentacles of mist gently prodded around his corrupted eye. He sighed a resigned breath, which echoed only in a deeper silence in the eerie world they were in.
Time passed slowly, Jake felt his nervousness increase. He thought he heard things in the mist, even if he knew it was impossible. He invented terrifying shapes that were slowly creeping toward them. Then he felt it, a low hum in his bones. He froze, a hunter has a lock on us. He looked at Gareth, who seemed undisturbed. The young man focused on the feeling again, it was faint and far away. We have time, but they will get closer every day now. He clenched his fist, letting the mist wrap around them, and punched the air, a pink swirling tail following his attacks, like he threw tiny meteors. When they find us, I'll be ready.
It seemed they did not stay as long as usual in the mist, but Jake just wanted to start running and get away from the place that was a beacon for their enemies. He tapped Gareth's shoulder, the warrior opened his eyes. When he saw his apprentice's worried expression, he got up. They phased back together into the real world. "What is it?" Asked Gareth? The young man answered, "I felt something in the mist, the same thing as back then. A humming, like when the hunter was getting closer. But it was very faint." The giant frowned. "I didn't sense anything. You are really your father's son, developing such sensitivity." Then he put his backpack on. "Well, we knew they would track us; time to run." Jake took his backpack, and soon they were trotting in the distance.
As they found their rhythm, Jake asked, "So my father was very sensitive to the mist?" The warrior smiled, "Yes, he was. The thing he could do. He sometimes made me feel like a big oaf." The young man glanced at him, trying to hide his smirk. His mentor frowned and said menacingly, "Don't you even dare." Jake let his smirk bloom and said innocently, "I don't see what you're talking about." The giant shook his head in mock disapproval. Both chuckling, they continued to flee toward the unknown.