I threw myself through the forest as fast as I possibly could. Ignoring the branches and thorns catching my clothes along the way. The clothes I could fix, my life was an entirely different story. I turned back and could tell I had lost them in my mad dash to freedom.

"Broke. What was that?" I asked while struggling harshly to catch my breath.

They were a human. One who served you food and protected you while you slept.

"They killed two people last night. And did you see their mask? Terrifying."

I'm sure the mercenaries who captured you thought the same before killing them.

"Not helping, Broke!." I snapped at the companion trapped inside my head.

"Who's not helping?" Nev said, hanging from a vine resembling everyone's favorite web-slinger.

I turned slowly, not trying to provoke sudden moves from the dangling demon. Then dashed in the opposite direction, plummeting immediately down a steep precipice in this part of the forest.

I fell quickly, hitting a rock, branch, and another rock before finally catching myself on a sturdy branch on the cliffside. I closed my eyes, clenching tight to the branch, only opening my eyes once I felt entirely secure in its grips. The branch swung a surprising distance as the ground grew farther and farther away.

"You okay, Mersault?" Nev asked as I clutched onto their arm.

"Don't kill me, please," I begged, receiving looks of confusion as my only response.

They pulled us back up effortlessly, retracting what resembled an incredibly long root, and set me back onto the ground above. Nev dusted themselves off as I hugged the ground. I'd never been more grateful not to be plummeting to my death.

"So, what's the deal?" They asked. "Is this really the guy?"

"What? Me?"

"Hush, I'm not talking to you."

They faced the nearest tree as if they were having a riveting conversation.

"Oh really? That many?"

"Excuse me?" I interjected.

They lifted a finger while continuing to nod. "Okay, fine, I'll ask."

Nev turned back to me, apparently finished with their one-sided conversation.

"Why did you burn down half of Salinel?"

"I uh, didn't." I lied.

They looked towards the tree and then back to me. "That's a lie."

The smile left their face, and I was suddenly reminded of our first encounter.

"It was, I'm sorry. People hurt someone I cared about, a friend." I felt tears welling up in my eyes as if I was a child being reprimanded. "I didn't mean to burn the city, just one person who deserved it, I promise."

Nev looked back to the tree, laughing at some silent joke.

"Please don't take me to jail." I pleaded, prostrating myself in front of them. "I know there's a lot of money for my capture, but I want to live. See the world."

"I'm not gonna turn you in," Nev replied.

"Please!" I begged. "I want to liv-wait what?"

"I'm not gonna turn you in." They turned back to the tree. "He's funnier than you said."

They strolled away from the cliff's edge and pulled another blade of grass, performing a jaunty tune as they walked off. I looked at them through tear-filled eyes and wiped the snot from my face. Then, I rose to my feet and looked down the cliffside, imagining my barely dodged death.

"Wait up!" I yelled after them, pretending I wasn't sobbing a moment before.

Nev, I learned, spent their entire life in forests. For as long as they could remember, they would often correct. No allies, no family, and no friends outside of the voices they would hear. Nev would call them Spirits. These Spirits were the exact reason Nev sought me out and rescued me from the bounty hunters. They were grateful as they hated the massive city and the people that lived inside its walls.

"They constantly expand," Nev explained. "Taking what isn't theirs without permission and acting like their special for being the ones to take it first."

"Of course." I responded, unconvinced of the existence of these 'spirits.'

There were stranger things in this world, I told myself. For example, an all-knowing AI presence that lived inside my mind explaining what was happening when I had no idea. I suppose I could let their 'Spirits' slide for now.

"So... where are we going?" I asked after an hour or two of us walking through the dense forest.

"You're trying to cross the Prathein Sea, right?"

"Yeah? How did you kn-let me guess, Spirits?"

They looked back and shot me a wink in affirmation. If I didn't witness them murder two people the night before and regularly commune with voices only they could hear, I might've been flattered.

"So my place is on the way. We should get there at about sundown, then tomorrow morning I'll take you to Thaxton. You should be able to find travel from there."

"Wow," I replied, surprised they had a fully fleshed-out plan. "Thank you."

"It's what you do, and you seem nice." They said. "Despite having run away from me screaming three separate times."

"Sorry about that."

"It's okay. I might have taken it the wrong way if it had happened a fourth time."

We laughed as we headed through the forest, not following any trails. However, it seemed like Nev knew where they were at all times, and their confidence made me feel much more comfortable.

"Do you ever get lonely?" I asked after a long stretch of silence.

"Sometimes, although I'm never truly alone." They gestured to the copious amount of green that surrounded us. "I love them, but the Spirits don't know what it's like to be physical, and I don't know what it's like to be incorporeal. We're here for each other, but sometimes I don't know what that truly means."

I immediately thought of Deanne and her family, whom I left for their protection. I wondered if I should have stayed. After all, how could I possibly protect them if I wasn't there to protect them physically?

"I understand exactly how you feel." I finally replied after a long period of silence.

We spent the rest of our walk in quiet contemplation. I thought about the people I had left behind in this world and my last. While Nev turned to the forest occasionally as if it was explaining the pathway home and offering its unconditional support.

"Well, we're here." They stated as the sun was beginning to set on our twelve-hour hike.

My flabby tailor's body ached in every joint and muscle I had, most of which I didn't even know existed. It was self-imposed torture, however, as I refused to request a break in fear of looking any weaker to this person I've fled from and wept in front of within our first three interactions. Nevertheless, all the pain in my body had temporarily vanished as I looked upon their home.

A tree stood, its trunk wider than any building I'd ever lived in. Roots stretched out for meters on every side, creating limited spots where the dirt was visible. Its canopy hung far above the rest of the forest, casting a looming shadow over its roots and the surrounding woods.

"Your home is beautiful." I stared in awe.

"What?! No!" They shouted out, clearly distracted by their formless friends.

She ran to the opposite side of the tree, jumping off and over roots as if the waist-high chunks of wood weren't even there. I followed suit, much slower, however, until we came across the backside of the tree. A fire burned, releasing plumes of smoke into the sky. An oil spread around the trunk's roots and base, guiding the fire down a set path.

"I can help!" I shouted out, creating a massive sheet of the fire retardant material I used to escape from Salinel.

The fire had just started. If I could stop it quickly, I could save Nev's home. I threw the sheet across the fire, but the flames' updraft caught the other end, causing one end to soar aggressively upwards.

"Hold the other end!"

I gripped the edge of the cloth as it struggled to free itself and stepped away from the fire.

"I can't do it without you. Grab the other end, and we can stop it quickly." As I turned back to see what had taken Nev so long, my heart sank.

The handle of an axe was slammed into my face, shattering my barely healed nose. I hit the ground and saw two ghosts before me. Clea stood with a dagger pressed to Nev's throat with her other hand covering their mouth. While Lex stood above me, spinning his axe haphazardly in his hands.

I don't think this is what Nev meant by 'Spirits.'