Neo woke later than the other two.
That was expected. He had taken the later watch, so when he finally opened his eyes, the fire had already been fed, the worst of the morning dampness had lifted, and Alice and Snot were both awake. Snot sat near the roots eating what little food he still had left, while Alice adjusted the strap of her backpack and watched the trees in that quiet way of hers.
The moment Snot noticed him stir, he spoke around a bite of dried food.
"I already explained the Soul Cores thing to Alice. She's still far from the next Core, so after I told her the Breach closed and we need to push someone upward fast, she agreed. For now, you're taking and consuming the Soul Cores."
Neo pushed himself up, rubbed the sleep from his eyes with the heel of his hand, and let out a low breath.
"Good." He dragged a hand through his hair, grimacing slightly as a more practical thought caught up. "By the way... we're running low on food."
Snot swallowed and lifted a brow.
