Akira looked at him, her mouth full of rabbit, and asked through a muffled bite, "Why are you in this forest, Thorne? Why risk your life like this? If I didn't know better, I'd call you a fool for coming in here."
Thorne paused, his hands stilling over the fire as her words settled into the quiet of the cave. A faint smile played on his lips, a mix of humor and something deeper—something darker.
"Well," he began, "I can see why you'd ask that. Not technically, of course."
They both looked at each other and laughed.
Akira raised an eyebrow, swallowing her food as she fixed him with a curious stare.
"Seriously though, why? This place... it's not somewhere people walk into lightly. You know that."
Thorne leaned back slightly, resting his hands on his knees, the heat from the fire brushing against his face. The flickering light cast long shadows over his features, giving his face a thoughtful, almost haunted look. He didn't answer immediately. Instead, he let the weight of her question sit with him for a moment, considering how to explain something that had driven him for as long as he could remember.
"I was born without irises," he said, finally breaking the silence. "My father... he tried everything. Every healer from every corner of the kingdoms.
We even went to Obatala's temple, where they're known to work miracles with their hands. But they couldn't fix it. You can't heal something that was never there."
He shrugged, though the gesture was more resigned than casual.
"I've spent my whole life like this—seeing without seeing. People treat you differently, even if they don't mean to. Like you're fragile. Like you're broken. It's always, 'Thorne, be careful. Thorne, don't do this. Thorne, you can't do that.'"
His smile faded as his voice grew quieter, more serious.
"But I refuse to accept that. I refuse to live like that forever, knowing I didn't try everything I could to change it."
Akira shifted, her gaze never leaving his face as he spoke. She was listening intently, and despite the usual bravado that radiated from her, Thorne could sense that she understood, even if she didn't say it outright.
"My mask," Thorne continued, his voice gaining strength again,
"It's my last chance. When I carve it with my own hands, and when I wear it, maybe, just maybe, it could give me what I've always wanted—what no healer or ritual has ever been able to do. If there's even a chance that this mask can give me my sight, then I have to be here. I have to risk it."
Akira's eyes softened slightly, though her tone remained blunt.
"And if it doesn't work? If you go through all this and nothing changes?"
Thorne's jaw tightened, but he didn't look away.
"Then at least I'll know I tried. I'd rather fail trying to fix it than live the rest of my life wondering what could've been. I don't want to be normal. I don't want to live within this limitation without fighting against it."
Akira leaned back, her head resting against the hard bark of a tree, Thorne on the other side. She chewed on her thoughts for a moment, her eyes narrowing in thought.
"You've got guts, I'll give you that," she said at last.
"But this forest... it's not kind to hope. It doesn't care about your reasons, Thorne. It'll chew you up and spit you out whether you've got a noble cause or not."
Thorne smirked, his expression hardening with determination. "That may be true, but I didn't come here expecting kindness. I came here to find something I've never had. Sight. And if I have to walk through hell to get it, so be it."
He turned his head slightly,
"I've been told many times to just accept my fate, to live a safe life in the walls of Ironhold. But I can't. This is my choice, my path. I want to carve my own mask and trace my own future, maybe it's foolish to hope, but I can't just live with this limitation without at least trying to fix it. I refuse to settle for being the blind son of a chief."
Akira chuckled lightly, though there was a hint of respect in her voice now.
"You're either brave or stupid. Maybe both."
Thorne shrugged again, a faint smile tugging at the corner of his mouth.
"Maybe."
For a little while, they sat in silence, the crackling of the fire filling the space between them. Thorne could feel the weight of his own words lingering in the air, like a challenge thrown at the very gods who watched over the Garden.
He didn't know if his mask would give him what he desired, but he would walk every path, face every beast, and endure every hardship to find out.
After a few moments, Akira spoke again, her voice softer now, almost thoughtful.
"I get it. You want to take control. It's something we're not always given the chance to do, especially when the gods have their hands in everything."
Thorne nodded, though he kept his thoughts to himself. Akira was right, but this wasn't about the gods. This was about him and the choice to fight for what he wanted, no matter the cost.
Eventually, Thorne shifted, standing up and stretching his limbs. "Well, we'll figure out our next move tomorrow," he said, his voice back to its usual sharpness.
" We've got some ground to cover before we find an archway out of here, and I've still got things to do."
Akira smiled slightly, standing up as well. "I figured as much."
"Hey wanna hear a joke?" Akira asked a hint of amusement in her voice, "A cripple and a blind boy sauntering around the garden of the gods."
Thorne gave a nod.
"Why did the blind boy and one arm girl get lost in the garden of the gods?"
"Why?" Thorne asked trying to play along.
"Because he couldn't see the signs and she couldn't point them in the right direction!"
Thorne chuckled, shaking his head slightly. "I think I've heard that one before."
Akira grinned, her usual fire sparking back to life.
"Well, I had to lighten the mood somehow. Imagine us—blind boy and a one-armed girl, sauntering around the Garden of the Gods like we're on a casual stroll."
Thorne smirked, the light of the fire reflecting off his face. "Sounds like the start of an epic tale to me."
"Or a tragedy," Akira shot back with a playful shrug. "But who knows? Maybe we'll make it a comedy."
Thorne leaned back, resting his head against tree behind him. "As long as we're alive by the end of it, I'll take it."