The silence was no longer uncomfortable.
It was the kind that tightens your chest without warning.
Everything was still the same… in appearance.
The dry pounding of wood.The screech of metal.Dragging footsteps as if each one weighed twice as much.
But no.
It was not the same.
There was something different.
Every movement felt… slower. Heavier. As if the entire island were tired of itself.
Caelum walked a few steps behind Nami, his gaze lowered but not really seeing the ground.
He didn't speak.
There was no need.
The tension was still there. Stuck to the skin. Like humidity.
It hadn't gone away at any moment.
Medaka neither.
She was still behind.
Not close enough to trust… but not far enough to disappear.
Watching.
Always watching.
—You shouldn't keep moving forward.
The voice cut through the air, but no one reacted immediately.
Carina barely turned her head, just enough.
—You're still here.
—You too.
—We are not the ones who should leave.
Silence.
Medaka didn't answer.
But she didn't move either.
Nami kept walking at the front.
A little faster now.
As if something inside her pushed her.
Or worse… as if she already knew what she was going to find.
Then she stopped.
Abruptly.
Caelum raised his gaze.
A man was leaning against a wall, breathing as if each breath cost him his life.
His hands were trembling.
He tried to lift a box.
He couldn't.
His arms gave out.
He fell to his knees.
And no one did anything.
No one approached.
No one looked.
It was as if he didn't exist.
As if he were already outside the world of the others.
Medaka was the only one who reacted.
She didn't hesitate.
She moved.
Fast.
Too fast.
—Wait—!
She reached him, crouching down suddenly.
She tried to lift the box.
It didn't move.
It was too much.
—Don't move… I—
—What do you think you're doing?
The voice was like a bucket of ice water.
Direct. Without emotion.
Caelum raised his head.
Two men.
No… three.
Uniforms.
Weapons.
They walked without hurry.
As if this had already been decided before it began.
Medaka stayed still.
But she didn't step back.
—He's not doing anything.
One of them smiled.
It wasn't a pleasant smile.
—Neither should you.
The blow came without warning.
Dry.
The sound echoed more than the impact.
The armor absorbed some… but not enough.
Medaka fell.
The helmet hit the wood with a hollow sound.
—Don't interfere.
Another grabbed her by the arm.
Lifted her as if she weighed nothing.
—Do you think you're a hero?
Medaka tried to break free.
She struggled.
It didn't work.
—Let go—
The second blow was worse.
Stronger.
Her body tensed.
But she didn't scream.
Caelum didn't move.
One second.
Two.
Three.
His hand closed slowly.
Very slowly.
A spark appeared.
Small.
Unstable.
As if it doubted existing.
—…no…
Nami's voice was low.
Tense.
But Caelum was no longer listening.
Or maybe he was… and chose to ignore it.
The third blow never came.
Something stopped it.
The shaft of the harpoon.
Poorly placed.
Clumsy.
But enough.
The impact vibrated in the air.
Caelum was there.
Breathing faster.
—…let her go.
Silence.
The men looked at him.
Measuring him.
—And who are you?
Good question.
Caelum had no answer.
The first attack came directly.
Fast.
Caelum blocked… more by reflex than by intention.
Badly.
The impact ran through his entire arm.
The harpoon trembled in his hands.
—Tch—
He stepped back.
Readjusted his grip as he could.
There was no technique.
There was no practice.
Only… urgency.
The next blow passed brushing him.
Too close.
He responded.
A horizontal sweep.
Clumsy.
Brutal.
It worked.
Halfway.
The man stepped back.
Not because of skill.
Because of force.
The third one came in.
Faster.
Too fast.
The blow hit his side.
The air left him at once.
—…damn…
There was no time.
Another attack.
His body reacted on its own.
Before his head.
The harpoon went up.
Blocked.
This time better.
Not perfect.
But better.
He pushed.
Created distance.
Breathed.
Badly.
Disordered.
—…this is not—
The spark returned.
More intense.
Jumped from his hand to the metal.
A dry hum.
Strange.
The next impact… changed.
It wasn't stronger.
But it was more… charged.
The man stepped back more than expected.
Caelum stayed still for a moment.
—…again…
And then—
Everything went to hell.
The other attacked.
Too fast.
Caelum didn't make it.
And even so—
The discharge came out.
Without control.
Without form.
Without permission.
The air tensed.
The sound was brutal.
Chaotic.
The man fell.
But not only him.
A nearby box exploded into pieces.
The wood splintered.
The ground was marked.
The noise…
too much.
Caelum froze.
Breathing as if he had run for kilometers.
—…I didn't…
—Enough!
Nami's voice cut him off.
Firm.
No room for discussion.
—That's enough.
Silence.
The men stepped back.
Not out of fear.
Out of calculation.
That was worse.
—This isn't over.
They left.
Without hurry.
But without taking their eyes off them.
Clear promise.
The silence returned.
But it wasn't the same.
Caelum lowered the harpoon.
His hands trembled.
—…damn…
And then everything hit him.
The exhaustion.
The weight.
The emptiness.
He took a step back.
Unstable.
Nami was already there.
—Are you okay?
It didn't sound casual.
Caelum nodded slightly.
—…yeah.
Lie.
But he didn't have anything better.
Carina approached as well.
Looked him up and down.
Analyzing.
—I didn't know you could do that.
There was no mockery in her voice.
That was new.
Caelum didn't answer.
He didn't even know what he had done exactly.
Medaka was still on the ground.
She stood up slowly.
Looking at them.
Different.
Not like before.
—…why?
The question hung in the air.
Caelum took a deep breath.
—…I didn't think.
And it was true.
Medaka clenched her fists.
—That's stupid.
Carina smiled.
—Very.
Nami said nothing.
But she didn't step away either.
The wind returned.
Stronger.
Dragging dust.
And something else.
Caelum looked toward where the men had disappeared.
—…they're going to look for us.
Carina crossed her arms.
—Of course they are.
Pause.
—And now it's going to get interesting.
Nami didn't respond.
But she didn't step back either.
Medaka looked at them for a moment longer.
Thinking.
Processing.
—…you can't stay here.
Pause.
—But you can't leave either.
Silence.
Caelum let out the air slowly.
—…then we're in.
No one denied it.
Because it was already a fact.
The wind slipped again through the structures.
And this time…
it didn't bring silence.
It brought something worse.
Something they could no longer ignore.