Mac was still holding the Komyu stone. It had been a few moments since he said anything, but Luterio was still talking. Mac silently watched Luterio asking questions about his brother incessantly. Mac could easily hear the worry and panic in Luterio's voice.
With all things considered, even if he felt horrible for scaring Olito, Mac had no qualms for Luterio. Mac quickly managed to go back to his kidnapper act.
"Hey! Calm down, Luterio!" Mac said without a smile. "You are gonna wake Olito up! And I amma tell you, I don't want to have to deal with him one more time!"
"You..." Luterio barely managed to control himself in his rage. "Where is Olito!? What did you do to him!?"
"Didn't you just hear me!?" Mac said with a tinge of real annoyance. "I am serious now. If you don't get a hold of yourself, I will have to end the call!" He tried to scare Luterio into submission one more time. "Luckily, I will have Olito to keep me company." He added.
The silence from the stone was brief. "What do you want!?" Luterio's question sounded like an order.
The time had finally come. Now Mac just needed to make the correct demand. But what should he ask?
Should he directly trade Olito for the safety of Sun Grow Tribe? "No! That would not work!" He concluded. How could he do that after all? Even if Mac made them make a promise, nothing was stopping them from breaking it.
Could he make them leave the area altogether forever? "No! They could always come back!" He admitted. Mac regretted not knowing how to tie people's promises with their lives. He knew that was a thing, but he did not know how to do them.
Mac realized that he was unlikely to find a definitive solution in a small amount of time. So, to his kind side displeasure, he decided to play a longer game with this hostage situation. He needed more time to think, and he also needed more information.
"What do I want? Well, a lot of things, actually." Mac tried to remain calm. "But the thing that I want the most right now is for you to stay where you are!"
"Wha-"
"NO, THIS IS THE TIME THAT I TALK, AND YOU LISTEN!" Mac decided that this was the best time for him to be overbearing. "MY DEMAND IS AS SIMPLE AS IT CAN BE! YOU STAY WHERE YOU ARE UNTIL I CALL YOU AGAIN, OK!?" Noticing Luterio's silence, Mac continued. "IF I EVEN SEE YOU OR ANYONE ELSE FOR THAT MATTER, I PROMISE YOU, NOT EVEN THE CRIMSON COAST WILL BE ABLE TO HELP LITTLE OLITO!"
Hai observed everything with a fright that only Mac could make her experience. She was still on the ground, in front of him, as she did not have the strength to move.
"How much farther will he... will we have to go?" She thought. Hai was starting to understand something. Even though Mac was the one saying those crimes, she had the power to stop him. She could not fight, but she could still scream. Hai was confident that if she yelled the right things, Mac's cover could be blown. But Hai did nothing. The village was more important to her than her own moral code.
Hai was not the one using a kid as a bargain, but she was just as guilty. And she was willing to accept that.
"Oh well, I think I am done here," Mac said with a much calmer voice. "Now it is your turn to speak! So, what will be your answer to my harmless demand?"
"We... We shall attend to your demands" The voice came from the stone, distressed. "We will not be moving until you say otherwise. That is, as long Olito is safe!"
"That is good. That is good." Mac said in a joyful tone, but he did not smile. "Just make sure to not leave your Komyu stone laying around. I will be contacting you soon."
And just like that, Mac let go of the stone in his hand. As the rock fell on the sand, the glowing rune gradually faded. Neither Mac nor Hai could send a message anymore.
Mac let himself drop into the sand. He knew that cutting contact so abruptly like that was not the best decision. He knew that he could have acquired important information if he continued on. He knew that he could have done more. But Mac was so tired.
Mac sat cross-legged in front of Hai with his hands covering his face. Both of them said nothing. They just reflected on their actions and choices.
"It is not over yet." Hai thought to herself. She had a feeling that the night still had more surprises and trials for her to overcome.
But she felt so weak. And not only because she wasted a lot of energy before. Hai knew that even if she was at full power, she would be useless.
That was why she needed Mac. His means were horrible, but it was the only thing Hai had. And if she had to bear the guilt and shame of his actions, then so be it. Hai would become a monster in her own eyes, but it would be worth it if this conflict was resolved.
While Hai was assuming her responsibilities, Mac was being crushed by the moral ambiguity of his actions and choices. That was not the first time that something suchlike happened, and he was sure that would not be the last time.
Mac is always getting in trouble, and he usually fixes them by questionable means. He was just afraid that he might eventually go too far if this toxic behavior continued.
The silence between Mac and Hai was only broken by the weak waves coming from the red sea. Hai was momentarily mesmerized by them. It had been such a long time since she saw them. But that was not the time for that! Hai looked at Mac and noticed that he was still with his face covered by his hands.
"Are you alright?" She tried asking. "Did your... plan not go as you expected?"
"No, the plan went exactly as I expected, actually!" He said right away, without looking Hai in the face. "You know, I had most of the plan in my head from the start. I would entertain the guy on the other side a little. I would lead the conversation and his expectations. And, just as I planned almost everything else, I would terrorize the kid to make this whole "act" more convincing. I am a monster."
"Well, that plan of yours was for a good cause, right?" Hai tried to think positively.
"Ah, but wait, don't take your conclusions just yet," Mac said. "Let me tell you the worst part. I enjoyed the plan! The idea of it, at least. I believed that it would be funny! I assumed that it would be cool! I thought that it would be entertaining!"
Hai was taken aback. "So, does that mean that you do not feel bad about it?"
"Of course, I feel awful about it!" Mac screamed, finally looking at Hai. "I mean, who wouldn't feel awful about torturing a fucking child?! But then again, what type of psycho could come up with the idea of torturing one?! My intentions and my actions were all wrong!"
"But you recognize that they were wrong, right?" Hai was giving her best to calm Mac down. "Doesn't that mean that you are becoming a better person with your mistakes?"
Mac wanted to scream more, but Hai's words depressed him greatly. She did not understand how much Mac had repeated similar actions in the past, and he was still like that. But that wasn't her fault. It was his! Talking with Hai would not solve anything, so he stopped trying.
Mac could not fix his problems tonight, but perhaps he could fix Hai's. There was still much to do, and he needed to use his time wisely. Mac had decided that he would focus on helping Hai once again, and maybe he would forget his sins and troubles while he was at it.
"You know what? I think that we have already spent way too long here." Mac said with a smile. He stood up from the ground with a jump. "It would be better if we did not waste the time that I gained for us talking." Mac was already thinking about what to do next, pushing his negative thoughts to the corner of his mind.
"Huh, what?" Hai did not expect Mac to change so much so fast. "Are you alright?" She genuinely thought that Mac suffered from some serious mental illness. There was no way a mentally healthy person could have so many mood swings.
"I will be alright," Mac answered. "Probably. Perhaps. One day. Maybe never, really! But I will make sure that your tribe will!."
Jokes were one of the ways that Mac used to distract himself.
"We need to come up with our next plan!" He continued. "And this time, I would appreciate your input on it since the last plan that I had was a bit extreme."
Hai was in a dilemma. She did not know if she should feel worried or scared of Mac. His mood swings were too extreme for her. But he had a point.
They were still not safe yet. Hai would have to put Mac's weird behavior aside for a while to focus on things more urgent.
But maybe, if everything worked out well late, she would like to help Mac, even if just a little.
Hai finally found the strength to get up. But even standing was proving to be a great deal for her. With her legs violently trembling, it looked like Hai would fall any moment.
Mac swiftly got close to her to offer support. "You keep asking if I am fine, but did you take a look at yourself? Are you even able to walk?"
"I don't know why I am like this." She said, trying to hide her embarrassment. "I thought that I would be fine by now, but I just fell so tired and... Hey, what are you doing!?"
As Hai was talking, Mac had an idea. He unceremonially lifted Hai by putting one hand behind her back and the other under her legs. He was princess-carrying her.
"I just had this crazy idea." He explained. "I just thought that it would be funnier if I did not explain it first."
"What!? The hell do I care if you think this is funny!" Hai was really embarrassed now. "Put me down this... Wait! Ah!!!"
Once more, Mac acted as Hai was still talking. He had just used his super strength to throw Hai into the red sea.
With a splash, Hai went under. It was a weird experience to dive in a wine-red sea. It could be disoriented to most, but not for Hai, as she had visited the Crimson Coast a thousand times already.
For a moment, Hai forgot about everything that was bothering her. She felt like she could spend the rest of her life down there, even if it meant that she would drown. As Hai watched her scarlet red hair blend in with the water, she was one with the red sea. Of course, Hai would feel like that, as the Crimson Coast was the place where she was born and reborn.
Hai wanted to stay floating in the sea forever, but something brought her back to reality. She felt her strength returning. Hai had actually forgotten about the healing properties of the sea. But apparently, Mac had not. "This was probably his idea." she thought.
Hai forced herself to say goodbye to her original crib. She swam up and quickly emerged from the sea, swaying her long red hair around.
Mac was observing everything from the shore. As Hai took her time to show up, Mac was getting nervous, thinking that perhaps the healing properties of the Crimson Coast were just a rumor. He was about to send the white thread from his head to find her when Hai finally appeared. Mac found himself speechless for a while with what he saw.
There was a unique form of beauty as Hai walked from the sea. The combining light from the sea and the moon gave Hai an ethereal appearance, like a painting that could only be seen, not touched. There was also strength behind her demeanor, as the sea had restored her force, and she confidently walked forward.
"Hey, Mac!" Hai said faking annoyance as her cheerful mood was too strong. "Next time, how about giving me a warning before throwing me around?"
Mac only wholeheartedly laughed. He was glad that his little jokes still made him feel at peace with himself.