“What are you doing?” came Oscar’s voice from the other side of the room.

Elijah looked up to see that the other man had cleaned himself up – at least a little. His hair was still matted and unkempt, and his beard fell to mid-chest. But he was at least clean, which was a nice change of pace. Over the course of the Primal Realm, Elijah had grown accustomed to the man’s smell, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t appreciate the lack of musky odor.

Not that Elijah had much room to talk. Sure, he showered when he could, but living in the wild didn’t always leave room – or energy – for proper hygiene. Except for brushing his teeth, which he made a point to do when he had a few moments to spare. It was a priority he’d picked up from his mother, who’d always taken dental care to an extreme. Elijah didn’t think he was at risk of getting cavities – not with his constitution – but bad breath was a definite concern that he’d long since vowed to keep at bay.

Thankfully, he still had some toothpaste, though because of its age, it had lost much of its minty flavor. It was still abrasive, though, so it did the job well enough to keep halitosis from taking root.

In any case, he wasn’t that concerned with hygiene at the moment. Instead, he’d been digging through his Ghoul-Hide Satchel in hopes of finding a couple of grove fruits to eat for breakfast. But this time, he was entirely out – much to his consternation.

“Nothing,” he sighed, looking around. The former contents of the satchel were scattered across the floor. Mostly, it was just various things he’d picked up during his time in the Primal Realm. Seeds and the like for the most part, though there were a couple of rocks he’d found interesting as well. “Just beginning to realize that I value different things than most people,” he admitted.

Indeed, the raiders had all spent days in Stillstone taking everything that wasn’t nailed down. Elijah hadn’t really participated in the looting, largely because most of his storage capacity was currently occupied. Not only did he have a huge geode natural treasure in there, but the rest of the space was taken up by the legacy of titans, which took the form of a huge crystal that looked vaguely like a spearhead.

He'd chosen to wait to inspect it properly, mostly to avoid prying eyes. He might’ve been on the verge of agreeing to a truce with the guilds, but that didn’t mean he trusted them. If his experiences had taught him anything, it was that people were often self-destructively selfish, and given half a chance, they’d act on their greed.

Not everyone, obviously. Most people would respect others’ property. But the sort of people who routinely ventured into towers and Primal Realms to slay monsters were the same kinds who would see a unique treasure as an opportunity to increase their own power. It just came with the territory.

Of course, Elijah fit into that same mold, though he tended to regard theft as counterproductive. Then again, his priorities were different than most people’s, and what he found valuable ran counter to common opinion.

“Those are new,” Oscar said, nodding to Elijah’s feet, which were wrapped in the reward he’d gotten from completing the Primal Realm. “Don’t look like they offer much protection, though. I prefer real shoes.”

For Oscar, real shoes were some old sneakers that looked like they should have been thrown out before the world had changed. Currently, they were barely held together by duct tape, and they sported more burns than should have been possible without turning to ash.

“They’re not shoes. They’re footwraps.”

“Seems pointless,” Oscar stated. Then, he shrugged, “But who am I to judge someone’s fashion choices? If you like them, then that’s all that matters.”

Elijah could recognize a patronizing tone when he heard one.

“They’re equipment. They give me bonuses to attributes,” he said. “And I’m pretty sure they have an ability.”

“Oh, like my tape.”

“Huh?”

“The duct tape. It was made by a crafter I met in Tampa. Or what was left of Tampa. Don’t go there.”

“What? Why?”

“It’s Tampa.”

“And?”

Oscar shook his head. “Everyone knows that nothing good ever happens in Tampa. Plus, it’s home to a bunch of rival gangs who fight each other more than they fight monsters,” he said. It was one of the longest statements the man had ever uttered – at least in range of Elijah’s hearing. Miraculously, he went on, “The women were nice, though. Brutal, but nice.”

“Women?”

“Former dancers. You know, the naked kind. They’re not naked anymore, but…”

“Wait, strippers?”

“Yeah. They kind of banded together. They’re one of the gangs. Nice ladies. The dogs liked them the most.”

“Let me get this straight,” Elijah said, trying to keep up. “You’re saying that Tampa is ruled by a gang of strippers?”

“No. I’m saying that part of Tampa is controlled by former dancers. There are a dozen gangs at least. They’re just one of them.”

Elijah got the sudden urge to go visit Tampa. Not for any lewd reason – or not completely. Rather, because the idea was such a novel one that he just found it interesting. Or maybe that was just what he told himself. Surely the image in his head was a lot more attractive than the reality, though.

In any case, they’d gotten off track. “You were talking about duct tape.”

“Oh. Right. The duct tape is magic. It can hold most things together and is practically indestructible. I’m not sure how it’s made, but the crafter who sold it to me said he had plenty more where it came from,” Oscar revealed. “I’ve only got half a roll left, though. Maybe I should go back to Tampa to get some more.”

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“Strippers?”

“No. Tape. It is very useful.”

“Oh,” Elijah said, trying not to grin. “That makes more sense. Anyway – what’d you get for conquering the Primal Realm? I got these nifty footwraps. You?”

Oscar unshouldered his pack, then reached inside. When he retracted his hand, he held a large bar of silvery metal. When Elijah looked closer, he saw blue lightning arcing just beneath the surface. It looked like touching it would result in a potent shock, though Oscar held it without issue.

However, it wasn’t until Elijah extended the senses from Soul of the Wild into the bar that he truly appreciated what he was looking at. The thing practically blazed with ethera, telling him just how powerful a resource it was. There wasn’t a lot of it. The bar was maybe a foot long and six inches across and deep. Though from the way Oscar held it, it weighed much more than it should have.

“What is it called?”

“Star electrum,” Oscar answered. “Slightly disappointing. I hoped for something useful.”

“My sister-in-law could probably help with that. She’s a Blacksmith, remember? She can probably make a powerful piece of gear out of it,” Elijah offered. “Maybe a piece of armor or some weapons. I don’t know. Carmen’ll know what to do with it.”

Oscar nodded, and Elijah asked about the dogs. As it turned out, they’d received a mix of collars and natural treasures that they immediately ate. According to Oscar, those offered permanent boosts to their attributes and could even improve the power of their abilities. The collars, by comparison, were protective in nature, offering a range of abilities.

“They should help,” Oscar admitted. By his tone, he was a little jealous of their windfall. Hopefully, Carmen would make something truly amazing for him to offset that feeling.

“So, are we ready to go back to the grove?” Elijah asked. “Anything you need to do here?”

For Oscar, the answer was a definitive no. He’d done nothing to conceal just how uncomfortable he was in the fort. So, he was eager to leave it behind, even if he was obviously trepidatious about visiting Elijah’s grove.

That morning, Elijah had met with Chelsea to set up a visit to New York where the guilds who’d signed the Four Corners Accord were headquartered. It was still a few weeks away, but he hoped it would prove fruitful. Because he was eager to get a new tree planted and on its way to regulating the ethereal output of the Primal Realm.

For now, though, there was nothing keeping him in the area.

So, he replaced everything in his Ghoul-Hide Satchel, vowing to clean it out at first opportunity, then left the fortress behind. The way out was fraught with subtle tension. Everyone there knew precisely how powerful Elijah and his companions were, and they clearly looked forward to them leaving. It was just a sad reality of his new place in the world, but one he’d begun to accept as unavoidable.

Thankfully, that sour note was quickly followed by a return to nature, which left everyone far more comfortable. Oscar and the dogs were extremely happy to get back into the wilderness, and the animals showed their pleasure by running around like excitable puppies.

And Elijah didn’t really blame them, either. For the first time in months, they didn’t have to worry about being ambushed by some hostile beast. Sure, the wilderness surrounding Bogota was still dangerous enough. The giant condors were a threat at all times, and there were plenty of powerful animals in the area.

But it wasn’t a Primal Realm.

At their level, nothing in the region could truly threaten them – not to the point where they wouldn’t have time to retreat and gather the rest of the pack to resist. So, the trek through the forested mountains was freeing in a way they hadn’t experienced in quite some time.

For Elijah’s part, he just enjoyed the scenery, sinking into the dense vitality of the area. He’d almost forgotten how comforting it was to be surrounded by unmitigated nature, and without hesitation, he let it fully envelop him.

That first night away from the fort, they camped beside a small stream. Elijah and Oscar caught a bunch of trout, and they enjoyed a quiet night that felt like a throwback to the past. No existential threats. No dangerous beasts. No responsibilities. Just a group of friends basking in the joys of nature.

Sitting by the fire Escobar had gleefully started, Elijah set his bowl aside and let out a sigh of contentment. “That might have been the worst fish stew I’ve ever eaten, but it did hit the spot,” he admitted.

There was something about food cooked in the wild that tasted different than meals prepared in civilization. They were unequivocally worse. Neither Elijah nor Oscar had the abilities of a Cook, and the artificed pan he’d bought could only do so much. But it was still satisfying in a way Elijah couldn’t really articulate.

“It was really bad. I am…used to it, though. For a while, I didn’t even cook.”

Elijah nodded, staring at the flickering flames as the sounds that came with camping in the forest surrounded him. The buzzing insects. The chirping crickets. The subtle rustle of the branches above. He felt it all more than he heard it – each individual organism blazed in his senses for dozens of feet in every direction – but the sounds were loud in his mind.

It reminded him of times long past, like when he’d go camping with his family.

“I’ve been there,” Elijah admitted, pushing those thoughts away. He didn’t want to think about loss. Not in such an idyllic setting. “Usually in one of my bestial forms, but I’ve eaten plenty of raw fish right out of the stream.”

“This is better.”

Elijah nodded, his hand finding the head of a contented dog. He gave Freddy a scratch behind her ears, and she let out an appreciative snort. “Yeah. It definitely is.”

Oscar might’ve lived a tough life, but he had something Elijah didn’t – constant companionship. Sure, that also came with responsibilities. That was the thing about loved ones – they were a blessing and a curse, the latter even more so when the world was as dangerous as it was.

But the former made it all worth it.

Still, Elijah wasn’t sure if he could have lived that sort of life. For better or worse, he was a bit of a loner. Sure, he liked having people – and dogs – around, but with the things he got up to, the liability they represented was too great to ignore. He wasn’t sure what he’d do if he lost one of the dogs.

Nothing good.

But they would soon be back in the grove where everyone would be safe. That was the thought that kept going through his mind as he and Oscar enjoyed a few minutes of silent reflection. Then, one by one, the dogs nodded off, followed by their Pack Leader. Elijah remained awake, as much to keep watch as to give his thoughts all due consideration.

By morning, he’d found no real answers to his many questions, and they set out to continue their journey to Bogota. The trip was much quicker than Elijah’s first time through the territory, largely because he wasn’t forced to fly a search grid looking for signs of Oscar, and they covered the distance in only another two days.

When they arrived in Bogota, they found it mostly unchanged. Maybe a few new people. More street vendors, too. But it was still the same place Elijah had left a few months before.

He swung by the group of multi-colored buildings, but Gabriella – the Artist he’d met during his first trip through the city – was nowhere to be found. He also considered stopping by to pay his respects to the Comisario, but in the end, he was far too eager to return home to delay the trip to the spires.

So, soon enough, he and the pack were standing in the middle of the silvery spires and waiting for the Space Mage to activate the mechanism that would send them across the world. They only had to wait for a few minutes before he announced the impending teleportation.

Then, with a surge of ethera, the spell tossed them to a similar set of spires just outside Ironshore.

The change in ethereal density was a welcome one, and Elijah let out a deep sigh as he enjoyed the difference. It felt like he could breathe fully again.

After only a few minutes, they set out toward the coast, reaching it soon after. However, when Elijah offered to ferry the pack across the strait and to his mist-wreathed island in the distance, they declined.

“We’ll swim. It’s good for them.”

Then, without further ado, Oscar and the pack waded into the sea, then made good on the man’s promise. For his part, Elijah watched them for only a few seconds before he initiated the transformation into the Shape of the Sky. He threw himself into the air, then headed home.