The trees were thinning. The deeper they walked, the darker the light became.
Asher led, blade tucked beneath his coat, footsteps quiet on the pine-needle floor. Behind him, light as fog, Sally followed. Her presence didn't trigger the Stealth Subsystem. Didn't weigh on the forest floor. He didn't need to look to know she was there. It was like walking with a shadow.
> [Stealth XP: +0.2% | Entropy: 7.1%]
The percentage barely ticked upward. The system stayed mostly quiet now—except for the occasional flicker of movement in the corner of his HUD. Watching. Logging.
Sally hummed behind him. The same soft tune, looping. Like a music box winding itself.
Finally, Asher spoke without turning.
"Why did you want to follow me?"
A pause. Then her answer came, soft but certain:
"Because I have nowhere else to go. And you didn't run from me."
The words sat between them for a moment. Honest. Heavy.
He said nothing. He didn't need to.
They walked on.
The forest gave way to a broken road—a cracked two-lane stretch veined with weeds and silence. A sign lay rusted in the ditch: WELCOME TO MIDPINE. Population: faded numbers.
Sally stepped beside him now, staring down the road.
"Is this where you're going?"
"It's where the trail leads."
He scanned ahead. Houses. Small. Abandoned. Some had doors ajar. Others were boarded up. One still had a child's tricycle lying on its side in the yard.
The system pinged.
> [New Task: Locate Shelter | Reward: +1 XP, +0.5 KP]
> [Optional Bonus: Secure Perimeter — +0.3 KP]
He ignored the rewards. He needed cover. Rest. Time to think.
Sally tugged lightly at his coat. "That one." She pointed to a narrow house with ivy crawling up one side. "It feels... quieter."
He eyed it. Two windows. One entry. Back exit partially collapsed. Minimal exposure.
He nodded.
The two of them approached. The door creaked inward with a single push. Dust clouded the air. Furniture lay under sheets, untouched by time or trespassers. Asher closed the door behind them, then moved to check the windows, blocking sightlines with old curtains.
Sally wandered the room like someone remembering a place she'd never seen. She touched nothing. Left no marks.
He sat down against the far wall, finally letting the weight in his limbs settle.
She stood across from him, hugging the bear tighter.
"Are you going to sleep?"
"Eventually."
"I don't sleep much anymore."
"I figured."
Another long silence. Then, quietly:
"Thank you."
He looked at her.
"For what?"
"Letting me stay."
Asher closed his eyes.
He didn't respond. But he didn't send her away either.
And for Sally, that was enough.
---
> [Entropy: 7.2%] [Stealth Subsystem XP: 31.4%]
Outside, the wind moved through the trees.
But inside, for the first time in days, it was still.