"What do ya need?" Belk asked, his arms crossed as he followed Vagnis into the forest. The scout stopped before him, his back still turned to the young scientist as his question hung in the air. The breeze blew by, the soft flapping of his shirt echoing in the tense silence.
Vagnis hands tightened into a fist, the shifting trees shedding the light of the sun onto his back.
"Listen…" He spoke softly, the word barely scraping from his throat, looking back at the scientist. "I'm sorry…"
"Eh?" Belk stared at him, caught off guard by his sudden apology, although despite his reaction, Vagnis stared at him with earnest eyes, his lips parting as he continued.
"I said some things, and I was wrong—science didn't make you weak, I was blinded by my own pride, treating you as an equal even though you're my superior," Vagnis explained, falling to one knee before the scientist, his head hung low. "I was out of line, and I apologize!"
Belk crossed his arms, his face in a scowl of exasperation. "Come on, don't do that! Stand up already will you?"
"Right away, sir–" Vagnis nodded, standing up before the young scientist.
"And don't call me sir!" Belk snapped, his brow furrowed in annoyance at the sudden formality. Vagnis was caught off guard by his sudden outburst, the scout scratching his cheek lightly as he tried to figure him out.
"What should I call you then?" He pondered, the young scientist walking up to him and lightly pushing his fist against his chest.
"You call me Belk!" He smiled, his gaze staring into Vagnis's confused one. "We're friends, nothing more, nothing less—"
"Friends? But I—" Vagnis's voice trailed off, looking to his fist that remained pressed against him. The young scientist finally removed it and placed both on his hips.
"That's in the past!" He insisted, a soft chuckle lining his words, waving off the past as though it was nothing but a bad dream. His face–once a confident goofy grin, turns serious for a moment, raising one hand to point at the scout. "Right now, I only want to hear one thing from you!"
"I need your word," He took a deep breath, his pointed finger turning into a firm fist a fist that stayed in front of a smirk of confidence. "That when I become chief, no matter what happens, you'll be by my side!"
It felt as though the wind picked up at his declaration, pushing past their locks and clothing that rested upon their backs. Vagnis's mouth was left slightly agape. The evaluation matches drifting back to his mind. His struggling form on the floor, only to be met with Belk's hand, ready to lift him up.
"You ok?" He asked, a gap in his smile back then.
Vagnis nodded, Belk's smile contagious. The two boys locked their hands, laughing away the events of that match. A time where their titles held no weight…
"You're crazy…" Vagnis muttered, wiping the tears from his eyes and bringing him back to the present.
"Huh?! Where did that come from?!" Belk snapped, watching as Vagnis laughed, the shimmering gleam of tears running down his fist as he desperately tried to get rid of them.
Vagnis laughed, the sound raw. "Seriously! Me, a friend?" His voice cracked, the truth clawing up his throat. "When you were sent away I—...I didn't do anything to defend you,"
"I even resented you, and refused to see your way, what kind of friend am I…" He raised his eyes to look at the scientist, noticing his faltering smile. The forest seemed to hold its breath around them. For a moment, Vagnis swore he saw a flicker of hurt in the scientist's eyes—a crack in that stubborn optimism—before Belk turned away, scrubbing a hand through his unruly hair.
"That's what you think?" He murmured, his voice uncharacteristically quiet "Well let me tell you something, Vagnis…"
"Most of my childhood, no one took me seriously, my craft was a waste of time to them, but you were the only one that took an interest,"
"But I didn't defend your ideals either—"
"Did I ask you to?!" Belk snapped, though there was no real heat behind his words, "I don't need a bodyguard you know, nor do I need you throwing your life away to follow me."
"What I need is someone to keep up when I go running," his hand rested on the young scout's shoulders, his expression more sincere as he spoke. "When I become chief,"
"I need you to go to see the stars with me…"
______________________________________________________________
[New points acquired!]
[Adaptability activated: New tree unlocked!]
[New skills available!]
"New skills huh—" Astra murmured to herself, her gaze panning over the massive skill tree that stood proud before her. She sat on her bed, residing in the hut the chief had given her for the time being. Three wolf cubs resided by her bed, a by product of the other wolves in her care. Celi nowhere to be found.
[skill keys! 3]
[Phantom wolves!] new!
[Extend your power to the very creatures under your whim!]
[Wolves evolution!] new!
[30 points needed!]
[Portal control 1/3] new!
[Skills with numbers by them scale your control of that skill! ]
[Blueprint wizard!]
[Tech control!]
[Tech block! (1/10)]
"Wolves evolution? What the hell is that— It doesn't have a description…" Astra muttered, twirling her hair as she tried to figure it out, not soon after shrugging it off and moving on. "Well it doesn't matter, I can't get it anyway."
"Well better control over my main skill set would be nice right?" Her finger hover over [Portal control 1/3] her brow furrowing as she finally takes the plunge, her finger pressing against the option twice. "That leaves me with one skill point though,"
She hummed softly, her gaze darting between [Phantom wolves!] and [Blueprint wizard!]
"On one hand…" She reasoned with herself, her thumb tapping against her chin. "Phantom wolves would be useful…"
"But I have to rebuild a ship soon, wouldn't being op at blueprints save me so much time?" She sighed, plopping back onto the bed, one of the wolves leaping on and licking her face.
"H-hey stop that!" She chuckled, her words carrying no weight as the others joined in. Her arms reached out and caressed their faces.
"Right, I should probably give you names huh?" She pondered, a soft smile on her face as she ruffled the fur of one, her eyes heterochromic, carrying both purple and blue gazes.
"I'll call you, Lyra," she reaches out to the other, a light scar tinged under his jaw, most likely from rough housing with the others.
"I'll call you…" She thought for a moment, her hand idly petting the wolf before coming to her solution. "Kairo," She declared.
Kairo wagged his tail in happiness, clearly thankful for the name she had given him.
"Last but not least…" her gaze dropped on the last of the three, a bit shier than his brother and sister, yet he was comfortable enough to join her. He laid obediently on the bed, his tail hardly giving the faintest wag.
Astra smiled, giving the wolf a scratch under his chin. "I'll call you Umi."