Andrew looked around, it was still dark around so he didn't feel like morning was coming, he checked his watch and saw that 3 hours had passed, so they hadn't been there too long, but since the conversation died, he just stayed there, looking upward for a while, until he saw some light creeping through the leaves into his face, he then realized how thick were the leaves in the trees around them, and remembered how deep into the forest they were.

Andrew stood up and lifted his bed, he'd grown used to his new daily routine after the first week traveling, he would pick the bed up, fold all the sheets and put them in Camilo's bag while Camilo bathed in the river, he would bathe then, while Camilo picked his sheets up and made breakfast. Kalenis would usually go away while they do that and would come back after eating something on its own.

Camilo was worried, he wanted to move on with his story, but, those particular memories weren't pleasing. Especially since, and he never told anyone this particular thing, when he came back to earth, he had felt the rush of memories. It was instant, but there was a reason why he remembered so much. It drove him mad.

This new part would be painful to remember, but he had to. He owed it to Andrew, and to his family, to let go of this. He was too focused on the past to go on to his future, this could be a way to get rid of that attachment to old grudges. He wasn't going to let go several of them, but at least, this could help with some.

"Andrew c'mon, hurry up, you said you weren't sleepy a few hours ago, we're already behind schedule and we shouldn't lose more time." Camilo said, as they walked for a while, focused on the path ahead, trying to stay clear of other creatures. He still didn't want to fight with Andrew on tow, if he could help it.

"What's the hurry if we're on the way? Relax a bit, Camilo" Andrew groaned.

"I'm not going to relax, don't think I forgot you gotta go back home"

"… oh, yeah, that." Andrew's stare went far, further than what his eyes could see, and this worried Camilo.

"Are you having second thoughts about home, Andrew?"

"No, it's not that, it's just…" Andrew sighed, "let's say I've come to terms that it may not happen any time soon. Or at all."

"Don't be like that Andrew, believe me when I say I'll get you home no matter what, okay? It may take some time, but it'll be done."

"There are portals to and from every possible world there is, except the younger ones" said Kalenis, walking through the trees, licking his beak and looking at them both "it is more than likely that you will find not only one, but many portals towards your world. Also, the portals act differently depending on who crosses them, so you will be able to get home sooner or later"

"Yeah! That thing he said" Camilo said, beaming with a smile, trying to ease Andrew's worries.

"You don't really sound confident in what you just said Camilo"

"I honestly don't know how they work." Camilo shrugged, there was no point in faking he knew what he was doing, "I know the one in the ancient temple of… Menefar? I think that's the name, anyways, that one sent me back to my house before I was summoned, so… it will probably work and get you to the cave."

"Yeah, I guess, but anyway, it's not like I'm going to be missed, so we got time"

"Don't think like that!" Camilo worried, rushing back to Andrew, "and if you think that… well. Let's not think about that, okay? Oh yeah, I'll keep talking about what happened on the city, so don't think too much about that for now."

"Oh, your previous tale, you were disturbed for what happened that time." Kalenis added, once again, reading into their bodies, "it seems you are still affected. Will you be alright?"

"It's okay, I've been overthinking it, and it was affecting me, but I think it's better to let it out and stop remembering it once and for all. Let's move, we have a long day ahead."

"Again, if you don't want to remember, and it causes you so much pain, it's better if you don't."

"Again, it'll be fine, stop worrying. Lets get out of this place and I'll begin with it."

Andrew picked the bag this time, he grunted, but he knew today was his turn to carry it. Plus, he also remembered that he still had to practice with the bow and arrows while they walked. Camilo had used the rest of the night they didn't sleep fletching a few arrows for him to practice. They weren't amazing, but they could still be used without leaving them empty handed while they traveled. Andrew cursed mentally; he should have slept the three hours they spent talking. Around their noon, he would be terribly tired.

"Okay…" Camilo took a deep breath before he began. This was gonna be difficult for him, "here we go, I guess…

Um, oh, yeah… I was at the river, about a couple kilometers or so from the city, I wanted to bathe there because, honestly, I smelled like cattle. After I did, I looked around to see if anyone nearby had seen me, still with my persecution fear, and I saw a smoke pillar behind me, where I came from…

I knew they were after me… I thought it was a matter of time, but this was too fast.

I…

I didn't…" Camilo took a deep breath, holding himself, as if he was afraid he would disappear, "I didn't want to…

Elkoala would have been pissed. If he wasn't really gonna kill me, now, I was sure the idea was pretty high on his priority list.

So, I kept going. I wanted to hide among the people of the town to at least make it harder for them to find me… either way, if Older One was there, I knew they would find me eventually.

I was sure I would stand out among the townspeople. Luckily, there were some humans in the streets, some were paupers and others were better dressed but they had injuries on their bodies, so someone like me wouldn't stand out. Most were slaves, but some weren't.

I walked around in a hurry, trying to get some place where no one could find me even if they were actually looking for me. I wanted to be as stealthily as I could… what's the word?"

"Average? Maybe mundane?"

"Perhaps you wished to be unremarkable."

"any of those work. I just didn't want anyone to remember having seen me. So, I walked around in a hurry, checking everywhere I could without getting in trouble, like I had lost something.

The only hiding place I found was near the entrance of the town, much to my growing pain in the ass and my panic, in a little hole on a wall, there was a small space that let me see into the main plaza, where the market was, and, in theory, no one should be able to see me there from outside, since there was no light in.

I crawled into that hole, and waited there for an eternity. It felt as the longest morning I've ever had.

I knew when they arrived, because the market went silent… I.

I could hear the rumbling of the mount…" Camilo's breathing had, the closer he got to this point, become uneven, and his frown grew tighter since he was getting angry and scared at the upcoming memories.

"hey, kid, breathe. Count backwards from one hundred, every six numbers." Andrew suggested, and Camilo followed his advice, slowly.

"okay, I'm all right… okay…

The market went silent and the… the mount I heard was one I knew too well. It was a golem mount, it looked reptilian, like a giant iguana, but it was metallic and it worked like machinery, and the only one with that mount was Felanor.

I smelled smoke coming from it, so I thought it may have been overworked to get here so fast. But he was alone,

He was alone.

He was supposed to be alone.

He was… wh-why was he…"

"Camilo, it's fine. This isn't happening right now."

"I know. I… I know…

I… he shouldn't have been able to find me on his own… he shouldn't have…

After a while, in fear, every spot on the market had been moved away. The people, everyone who saw Felanor, left the open space all cleaned up, and no one moved. If any of them were there, and you left, they would kill that person.

that's… that's when they all walked there." Once again, Camilo stopped, grunting at the air in front of him due to his frustration. Kalenis and Andrew just looked at him, neither wanted to interrupt, or this would become even more difficult. Kalenis did see, where Andrew apparently didn't, that Camilo was tearing up in his eyes.

It didn't take longer for the tears to start flowing, and Camilo to have trouble breathing and talking. Andrew approached to try and clean them, but Camilo pushed him away, cleaning his tears away by himself.

"Felanor and Older one," he continued, pushing himself to go on, "both of them were in the middle of the plaza… and the fuckers had the bear that helped me earlier tied to a huge log, burning and shaking himself…

Lingster…

Lingster was tied there somehow, without any rope, and he kept burning slowly! He couldn't… He couldn't get away and he wouldn't die in a long time… fuck, wait, a second please…." Camilo breathed deeply, he put his hands on his hair and slid them there a couple of times, tangling his hair between his fingers, almost wanting to rip it apart with each pull.

"Camilo, again, you don't—" Andrew was stopped by Camilo, who simply put his index over his own lips, and he took a while to calm.

"Um," he tried to organize his thoughts, "he… Lingster was screaming, or it looked like it, but there was no sound.

These… these fuckers started talking after everyone saw them.

—there is a human we're looking for in this town. This is what will happen to you and your town if we find out that you have been helping him hide — God, I'm shaking just by remembering how afraid I was.

—The human is in this town, a small one, his skin is lightly brown and he has long hair, I will find him even if you cover for him — that one was Older One. He seemed… distracted, and I was praying he wasn't already aware where I was.

—LINGSTER!—

A tiny creature yelled.

I could see him pushing through the people, with my VIP seating… he had a pale, white skin, whiter than white, and a long tail popping out of his back, it was thick, like the ones alligators have, but he didn't have scales, his skin was like mine, no fur, scales or anything else.

Dinak… my poor baby…" Camilo stopped for a bit to sniffle, and clean his tears, having a moment of even bigger sadness than he was having before. This time, when Andrew approached to try and calm him down, he let him hold him in his arms, wanting the support. After a bit of silence, when he calmed down, he continued talking.

"thanks…

Dinak was… he couldn't even finish what he was saying before Felanor dropped from his mount and punched him in the face.

Both of them flew away at the same time from it. He was bleeding, the kid, and Felanor had his nose twitched in a weird way, I could see it from really far so it had to be a serious pain.

—Felanor, go back to camp and report to the captain, treat your wound, I will find the human — Older one said, looking at him, and around, still distracted.

—What are your orders? — for some reason, it looked like Felanor didn't trust Older One at this point.

—find the human, restrain him and bring him back. If he resists, break him enough to bring him back to camp, if he still resists, kill him and make an example out of him, then report to the captain. Under no circumstances should I let him go, nor help him get away, and I'm not allowed to let a loophole let him get away—

I shuddered at my hiding spot, and a lot of the people were already looking around to see if anyone fit that description… some… some poor asshole was going to die if they looked like me." Camilo stops once more, and hugs himself as much as he can, trying to find solace in this dark memory.

"Felanor left.

Thank god he did.

His wound should have been serious if he refused to stay and… play… more, with Lingster. Then, older one tied the kid and put him together with Lingster.

Now, the little kid, Dinak, was screaming as loud as his lungs let him. It… a scream like that it's hard to ignore or forget, you know?

I was feeling sorry for the kid but I didn't have the balls to go out.

I was afraid.

I'm still afraid.

I didn't want to look at it anymore, but I had to be sure I could, at least, run away.

I saw people looking at them, no one wanted to help.

I don't blame them. Anyone who would dare, would simply join them.

I would have died…

I didn't wanna die.

But, seeing the little kid made me angry as well…

I was a mess of emotions. I no longer knew what the fuck did I want to do… and then, Older One turned his gigantic eye directly at me. When he saw me, I knew there was nothing I could do.

If I wanted to get away…

he had to…

die.

I had to kill him.

I was gonna get killed by Older One. I was poorly fed, and lots of people had never been able to do what I felt was my only choice.

I came out of the hole, while he stared at me, the townspeople seemed to be afraid of me as much as they were of older one. I had both knives out and took a piece of cloth that was in the ground, I cut my finger and scribbled there to show Older one." Camilo pauses for a moment, lost in thought as he looks at the same finger he cut in his story. Andrew tries to pat him in the back, to try and relax him, but Camilo flinched and moved away in a second.

"I'm fine… Andrew, have you killed someone? Another person?"

"I… a long time ago, in the army…"

"have you… never mind.

—What does this say?— I asked him. I wasn't sure I knew how to write. I learned a couple things by looking at the notes Elkoala's team passed to each other and what they said about it later.

—This note proves I'm dead or away from here — he simply read it. He didn't have to, but he did.

—I will kill you; if I do, will Elkoala destroy this town? — I must have stuttered twenty million times, asking that… I was so scared.

—Not if he finds proof that you are away and none of the townspeople helped.—

—good to know he's not a total dick. Let the two of them go, they have nothing to do with me.—

—the one on the left provided you food. The one in the right raised his voice against us. — Older One seemed to be looking for something, while he answered to me — You are our general's pet, why do you mind what happens to these two?—

—What you fucking do with me doesn't matter. Let them go. Now.—

—You don't command me—

That was it. I was furious enough not to think anything clearly. I ran towards him with the knives in my hands like they use them in the movies. I thought I knew how to use them that way and, since there's no movies there, Older one wouldn't know what to do.

I was such a moron.

Movies weren't gonna help!

I didn't know how to fucking fight. I had never killed anyone, and here I was, trying to do, not only fucking stupid shit, doing fucking stupid shit against someone that knew everything I didn't!

He just slapped my hands with his tentacles, and made me drop the knives with that.

Whenever I picked them up, he would make me throw them on the floor, over and over again...

It…

It seemed it was true he wanted me alive to take me to Elkoala but…

I – I wouldn't let him.

I wouldn't.

I wasn't…

I didn't wanna go back!

I was never gonna come back! Never! Never in my fucking life!"

"Camilo, you can stop, please, clean your face, don't do this to yourself" Andrew came closer once again, and tried to comfort Camilo, cleaning his tears.

"It's… It's okay, Andrew, it happened a long time ago. I'm okay." Camilo lied, still teared up, and having a hard time even breathing.

"You are not," Kalenis informed, reading into him "this story hurts you, at least as much as it did then"