The air was thick with leftover dampness from the flood, but the water had gone down enough to move. The ground was still slick, boots sinking slightly with each step, but at least they weren’t wading through it anymore.

Lilith walked beside me, quiet. She still had my bag slung over her shoulder, like it wasn’t a big deal. Maybe it wasn’t. But it still sat strange in my chest—how easily I’d let her take it.

“Not much farther,” I muttered.

Lilith glanced at me. “You expecting trouble?”

I shrugged. “Always.”

She smirked like that answer didn’t surprise her.

The ruins stretched out ahead, the buildings jagged and broken. Some were nothing but hollowed-out skeletons, others barely standing. The path wasn’t exactly safe, but it was the only way.

Lilith adjusted the bag, rolling her shoulder slightly. “Not as heavy as I expected.”

I gave her a look. “What, thought I was carrying bricks?”

She grinned. “Wouldn’t have been the weirdest thing.”

I huffed a small laugh, shaking my head. The conversation felt… easy. Not forced.

The building we were heading for wasn’t far now. Half-standing, but still stable enough. I’d been here before. I knew the routine.

Lilith stayed close as we stepped inside, her gaze sharp, scanning every shadow. She was tense, ready—like she didn’t quite trust this to go smoothly.

I couldn’t blame her.

The inside was dim, the air thick with dust. Footsteps echoed from deeper in, and a moment later, a familiar figure stepped forward.

Niko.

His eyes flicked over us, pausing on Lilith. “Didn’t expect to see you bringing someone along.”

I looked at him, then gave Lilith a quick glance. “She’s with me.”

Lilith didn’t say anything, just watched him.

Niko eyed the bag on her shoulder, then looked at me. “That it?”

Lilith shifted slightly, but I stepped forward first. “Yeah.”

Niko held out a hand. Lilith hesitated for just a second before slipping the bag off and passing it to me. I took it, the weight settling familiar in my hands.

For a moment, I thought she might say something about it. But she didn’t.

I handed the bag over. Niko unzipped it, checked the contents, then nodded. “Looks good.” He glanced between us again. “You staying, or just passing through?”

I shook my head. “We’re leaving. No reason to stick around. We have to return before the water starts rising again.”

“Figures.” Niko’s gaze lingered on Lilith for a second longer before he stepped back. “Try not to get yourselves killed out there.”

I scoffed. “No promises.”

Lilith followed me as we stepped back out into the ruins, the sun breaking through the gray sky.

“That went well,” she muttered.

I glanced at her. “You were expecting worse.”

“Always,” she echoed my words from earlier.

I smirked. “Told you.”

Lilith shook her head with a small, almost amused sigh.

And just like that, we kept moving.

Lilith kept pace with me.

“So, Niko…” she began, breaking the silence. “You’ve delivered to him before, right?”

I nodded. “Yeah. Orid used to bring me here when I was younger. He’d handle the deliveries, and I’d just… run around, I guess, when things were better.”

“He lost his wife and kids a while ago,” I added quietly. “After that, he kind of shut himself off from everyone. Just kept to himself, trying to survive.”

Lilith’s gaze softened. “Sounds like he’s been through a lot.”

I gave a small nod. “He has. But he’s not a bad guy. Not like people think. He just… he doesn’t have much left.”

“I remember how Niko used to feed us fish. Fresh fish, right from the ocean.”

Lilith glanced at me. “Isn't that common?”

“Not at all,” I said. “Most people ate whatever they could find—half-rotten, dried, barely edible. But Niko… he always had something better.

Lilith was quiet for a beat before asking, “You came here often?”

I exhaled. “Yeah. Orid made sure of it. Even if we were in a rush, we’d stop by. And every time, Niko had something for us. He’d act like it was nothing, but it wasn’t.”

Lilith just listened, letting me talk.

“When I was younger, I didn’t really get it,” I admitted. “Food was food. But Orid… he understood. Having something real, something that didn’t taste like it was weeks old—that meant something. Niko never let us leave hungry.”

Lilith’s gaze lingered on me. I wasn’t sure what she was thinking, but she didn’t interrupt.

I let out a small breath. “Orid always told stories while we ate. Same ones, over and over. I think he made half of them up, but I believed every word.” A faint smirk crossed my face. “Probably half of it was bullshit.”

Lilith smirked. “Sounds about right.”

I rolled my eyes but didn’t argue.

We walked in silence for a while, the ruins stretching ahead, the salt-heavy wind curling around us.

After a bit, Lilith nodded toward the water. “You ever go out there?”

I glanced at her, then at the ocean lapping against the ruins. A small, wry smile tugged at my lips. “Yeah.”

I exhaled. “When I was younger. Orid would be talking to Niko, and I’d get bored. I’d sneak off, climb down to the water, mess around like an idiot.” My fingers twitched at the memory. “Orid would always yell at me after. Said it wasn’t safe, that I was asking to drown.”

Lilith gave me a look. “And?”

I smirked faintly. “And he wasn’t wrong.”

Lilith huffed a quiet laugh.

“One time, he caught me right before I slipped in,” I went on. “Grabbed me by the collar, dragged me back up like I weighed nothing. I thought he was gonna kill me.”

Lilith grinned. “And did he?”

“Almost,” I muttered. “Made me sit in the corner of the room for an hour while he and Niko talked. Like I was some little kid.”

Lilith chuckled. “I bet you were pissed.”

“Furious,” I admitted. “But I still did it again a week later.”

She laughed under her breath. “Of course you did.”

I sighed, shaking my head. “Back then, things felt… simpler.” My voice dipped slightly. “Even if they weren’t.”

Lilith didn’t say anything right away. Just walked beside me, her expression thoughtful.

After a while, she said, “At least you had that.”

I swallowed. “Yeah.” My voice was quieter. “I did.”

The wind shifted, carrying the sharp scent of saltwater through the air.

We kept moving.