Aion sat on the cooling sand, staring out over the water’s surface. He’d snapped at Kail’s comment about his spark and hadn’t been able to calm down for over an hour. Luckily, he’d managed to fill his stomach with those awful seaweeds while crab hunting, so the hunger had dulled a bit. Every now and then, he wondered why no one had come to talk to him yet. Not that he was eager for company—he was actually kind of thankful they’d left him alone—but he couldn’t stop worrying about his own survival. Sitting on the shore of an unknown island at dusk didn’t exactly scream “great idea.” He was afraid of going back to camp and finding no one there. Who knew what could’ve happened?

The prince sifted the sand through his fingers, enjoying the sensation. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d made it to the ocean. It wasn’t like his father had locked him away or forbidden him to walk around the city freely, but somehow, after his twelfth moon, he’d spent nearly all his time inside the castle.

The chaos of home, his sister, and the other relatives and servants kept him distracted from realizing just how narrow his social circle was. These new people, though—they talked freely and easily, no matter their ranks or backgrounds. And Aion? He felt like a complete outsider. Even after he’d asked them to treat him as an equal, he understood they couldn’t just flip a switch and change their perception of him. Their lives were full of struggle—nothing like his. Even if they were all the same age, he still felt too inexperienced.

He looked out at the horizon again, and just like the first time, his heart skipped a beat. The sun had already dipped below the edge of the world, but streaks of azure still painted the sky. The stars blinked into view faster than he could keep up with. He couldn’t help but wish Brina were here. His sister used to step out into her garden almost every day to watch the sky—always facing where the sun would rise. Despite all their power, she could count on one hand how many times she’d seen the sun set by the ocean. The crown always had enemies. And here he was, watching the sky—and not missing home one bit. Maybe tomorrow he’d be whining to the gods for salvation, but not tonight.

He let out a soft sigh and closed his eyes when someone sat down beside him. Aion honestly didn’t feel like talking—he just didn’t want to be alone. And whoever had joined him, it definitely wasn’t Kail. And why would it be? Kail hadn’t even said anything truly offensive—just the truth. Others had whispered the same thing behind his back: “Dead man.” Courtiers, townsfolk, strangers, even people close to him. But it stung worse coming from someone he barely knew. Somehow, Kail had seen straight through to his fears and confirmed them. Maybe Aion had overreacted like a child, but what’s done is done.

Anyway, it wasn’t Kail sitting next to him now. Maybe that was for the best. Aion turned his head carefully—and his eyes widened in surprise. Sitting beside him was the girl, Ilay’s partner.

“If you’re wondering, my name’s Sina,” she said before he could ask.

Aion’s startled look didn’t go unnoticed. From what he’d gathered, she was a true fighter in their group, judging by the power her spark had granted her. Sina smiled. Apparently, someone had warned her that Aion preferred to drop the formalities. He was grateful she didn’t start gushing about his royal bloodline.

“I’m Aion,” he replied, feeling a little awkward saying it out loud.

Brina was the only girl he’d ever really considered a friend, so being around a pretty stranger made him noticeably tense. His father always carried himself with grace. His mother, though—she never let him out of her sight.

“I mean, everyone knows who the prince is. But a regular fighter like me? Not so much.” She didn’t hesitate to bring up the difference in their status and seemed way more confident than Aion could ever hope to be. Her gaze could probably scare off a wild beast, yet outwardly she looked delicate and soft.

“I know your name’s Sina. You and Ilay are in love, right?”

Every girl in their group had some kind of inner strength. Now Aion understood what his mother meant when she said you could spot a real lady from a mile away. Though Risa and Sina had been shaped by harsh lives and demanding work, and whatever they were now, it wasn’t what the court would call “ladylike.” He didn’t know the right word for it, but he liked it better than the courtly pretense.

“Yeah, he’s my boyfriend. We were planning to enter a union after the trip to the Second Continent. Maybe even settle there.”

Aion looked at her, first with interest, then with visible shock. The First Continent wasn’t exactly friendly, but at least it had a livable climate—unlike the ever-present heat and thirst of the Second.

“No need to look so shocked. There’s a lot of light over there, and that makes Ilay stronger, which improves our chances of survival. Not to mention my own strength. With it, we can handle any beast that comes our way.”

“Kail told me you can turn a stick into a sharp spear or something like that.” Aion wasn’t sure if it was okay to bring up their conversation, but he didn’t feel too guilty. After all, Mr. Unsinkable hadn’t exactly cared about anyone’s feelings either.

Sina smiled, and Aion felt himself blush—thankfully hidden by the night’s darkness.

“Yeah, but there’s a catch. I can sharpen anything.”

She looked around for something to demonstrate with and finally picked up a smooth little stone from the sand. With a deep breath, she held it in both hands. Right before Aion’s eyes, dust began to fall from the stone, and its edges started crumbling until they became sharp as blades. Aion shivered—it looked dangerous. She lightly touched the edge with her finger, and a thin line of blood immediately trickled down her wrist. Sina calmly pressed her ring finger to the cut and tossed the stone into the ocean. Aion watched the ripples spread across the water.

“That’s an incredible ability. You could join the army at just four moons.”

He tilted his head up to the sky, silently wondering who decided what sparks people received. And more importantly—why.

“Seems like you guys are all kind of... special? Or maybe just really useful.”

“You’re wrong about my ability,” Sina said. “When a four-moon-old child can turn any toy into a deadly weapon—that’s not a blessing. That’s a curse. For the parents and the kid. Ever since my spark awakened, I’ve had to wear gloves.”

Aion realized then why Sina didn’t flinch when she cut herself. Her life was a daily battle against her own spark. One careless move could lead to injury.

“All my clothes are enchanted. A bunch of seals woven into the fabric help suppress the spark. I held on to my gear tighter than to the raft during the wreck.”

“How did you even kiss Ilay then? Your spark doesn’t affect people?”

“Nope, it doesn’t. Thank the stars. Otherwise, a lot of things would’ve been off the table,” she said with a sly smile and a lower voice, making Aion blush again. That hadn’t even crossed his mind...

“You’ve been out here on the beach for a while now. Predators usually come out at night. You really wanna end up as some wildcat’s dinner?”

“I don’t think anything’s going to attack us while Redlay’s around,” Aion replied logically.

He didn’t really want to think about it, but the werebeast had probably already marked the territory. Most animals wouldn’t dare enter a zone guarded by a three-essence shapeshifter.

“I didn’t even notice when night fell. I was just thinking about stuff… watching the sun. I’ve never seen so many stars before.”

“Redlay’s not exactly a stone wall, you know. Trust me.” Sina turned her gaze aside and smiled again.

There was definitely an interesting story behind that reaction, and Aion was starting to feel a little jealous of all the shared memories and inside jokes they had.

“I’ve been on a lot of expeditions. You end up stuck in hideouts for days. You get so much of nature, you start cursing it. You’ve never seen the sunset from the northern shore of the Giants’ Mainland. Just before the sun dips below the horizon, the sky lights up with thousands of colors. Have you ever even left the city?”

“No. They never allowed my sister and me to go anywhere. You know, being royal heirs and all.” Aion just barely stopped himself from groaning. Since turning fourteen moons, even someone as politically clueless as him had started to realize he wasn’t going to be king. He and Brina were being groomed for completely different fates. “Sometimes I’d look at the sky from my sister’s garden.”

“Doesn’t exactly scream royal glamour,” Sina said with genuine surprise. Every time she saw the queen, she’d watch her walk away until she was out of sight. Many people disliked the crown for various reasons, usually out of envy. “Are you sure you didn’t confuse a palace with a prison?”

“Maybe it’s everyone else who confused the prison with a palace?”

Sina gave Aion a measuring look. The stars reflected in his blue eyes, the moons giving his skin an oddly pale hue. He lacked experience—completely. Raised like a greenhouse flower, Aion couldn’t die from a mosquito bite, but there was something in his gaze she’d seen before: the look sick animals had when they were too weak to resist anymore. It wasn’t about age—it was about the will to live and fight. She remembered that look in others, usually when they’d given up. And here he was, a prince, sitting on the shore of an unknown island, not even sure if going back made sense.

That’s when Sina decided to rethink her feelings about the crown… and the queen. Everyone knew she was kind and gentle, which is why they’d asked her to check on the prince. Aion’s odd behavior had started worrying the others. But when she found him, she saw way more than just a boy sulking over a cruel nickname. They’d barely gotten any answers from Kail before he’d wandered off with nothing but a few seaweeds. He hadn’t returned since. It left everyone uneasy—except for Azel, who kept smiling in that cryptic way of his.

“Aion… why did you take Kail’s words so personally? I mean, I get it, it’s Kail… but still.” Sina gently placed a hand on his shoulder.

Feeling the warmth of her hand, the prince eased a little. There was something comforting in her presence, someone whose childhood had probably been filled with “Don’t touch that!” and “You can’t go there!” Who better to open up to on a strange island?

“It’s not just Kail,” Aion began carefully, and Sina gave his shoulder a supportive squeeze. “It’s my spark… and my status. They don’t go together. People call me ‘The Dead One.’ What do you think it’s like being a prince with a nickname like that? Commoners might not know what it means, and you can fake your way through. But the moment you’re royalty—rumors start. My father’s a clever man, and just as cruel. Only my mother kept me from being exiled. At least until I turn twenty moons.”

“Why do I feel like this trip is your first exile?”

Aion turned toward Sina, and his eyes were full of gratitude. She had somehow managed to articulate what had been stuck in his head for days. He’d only ever seen that kind of understanding in his mother’s eyes.

“Kail called you the Dead One?”

“Yeah.” Aion nodded. “I know he didn’t mean anything by it. Took me no time to figure out he’s kind of an idiot—but this time, he wasn’t really to blame. He was just saying what he saw. We spent three hours crab hunting together. I’ve never done that before. At least not to survive. So he put two and two together and brought up the nickname. I was underwater for over twenty minutes.”

“That’s incredible, though!”

Sina tried to keep the surprise out of her voice but failed. Aion shot her a look, and she smiled sheepishly. This time, he let it slide—her words came off like a genuine compliment.

“Don’t get mad, it really is amazing. Anything that messes with something as basic as breathing—that’s kind of fascinating. I didn’t mean it in a bad way.”

“Says the girl they call Sharpening Stone.”

Sina gasped in mock offense at the made-up nickname, and now it was Aion’s turn to smile.

“When I got mad at Kail, I called him a log. You know… not the worst fit.”

“Oh, Gilem is gonna love that. Finally, a worthy rival!” She dug her hand into the cooling sand and let out a long breath. “Just don’t tell anyone about mine.”

After talking with Sina, Aion felt a strange lightness. The annoying thoughts were gone. Never before had he shared how he felt about his nickname. Kail hadn’t really done anything wrong—it was just Aion being, well… Aion. He’d always had a dramatic streak. He used to fight with his sister constantly. Good thing she always gave it back tenfold—he still remembered the scratch on his back, a thin scar that ran three vertebrae up from the base of his spine. A not-so-subtle reminder from Brina that you don’t pull a girl’s braids and walk away unscathed.

A howl echoed from somewhere nearby. Sina and Aion turned toward the sound.

“Redlay just finished sweeping the area.”

Far down the beach, the werewolf stood facing the ocean—just like them—but Aion could feel his eyes even from this distance. Though, in the pale moonlight, he couldn’t be sure Redlay had turned their way.

“That means we should head back. You think we can walk?”

“Yeah… I’ve seen enough beauty for one night. I’m starving.”

They stood, brushing the cold sand off their clothes. Sina smiled and nodded toward camp.

“Oh gods, I’m so hungry!”

“Your Highness! Such language!” she laughed.

Aion froze in place. The imitation of his mother’s voice was so spot-on, he instinctively straightened his back. That only made Sina laugh harder.

They disappeared into the shadows of the jungle. Redlay finally looked away from them and took a single step toward camp—but stopped.

Off to the side, right where Aion and Sina had been sitting, stood another figure. At first, the werewolf tensed and crouched low, trying to blend into the shadows. But as the wind shifted, he caught the scent.

He relaxed.

Kail hadn’t made it over to them. He’d been watching from a distance. Sometimes, it takes a little longer to build up the courage to do something you’re not used to. Redlay understood—he’d once been in the same position. He turned away, letting Kail keep his moment to himself. No need to make it any harder.

“Damn it. This counts, right, Azel?” Kail muttered into the night.

He looked down at his hands. He held a broad leaf like a makeshift plate, carrying food he’d collected: the crab he’d caught with Aion, some seaweed, a few sliced fruits, some nuts. It had taken all his charm to convince Azel to help without telling anyone. Risa probably figured it out anyway—she noticed everything. L

Kail wasn’t perfect. He didn’t have the easiest personality. But those days of not caring about the people around him? They were over. Now, at least, he was trying.

That’s how he made friends.

And maybe… Aion could be one of them.

“At least this time, I’m actually trying to say sorry…”