Chapter 51: The hands of fate 1
Darkness had begun to seep across the desert in slow, inevitable layers, as though the world itself was being gradually dipped into ink. The harsh violet sky that had dominated the day was now deepening into a heavier shade, its brightness bleeding away while faint streaks of orange lingered at the horizon like fading embers refusing to fully die. Across the vast wasteland, shadows stretched longer and thinner with every passing moment, crawling over dunes and broken rock formations until the entire landscape felt subtly altered, less exposed, more uncertain.
The steel-plated beetle moved with diminishing certainty as the group pressed onward. Its heavy legs, which had earlier carved through the sand with confident rhythm, now sank slightly deeper with each step, as though the ground itself had grown heavier in response to the approaching night. The sound of its movement shifted as well, the steady, grounded impact of its stride becoming duller, muffled by sand that seemed to soften and resist rather than support.
A cool wind began to move through the desert, slipping across the dunes in long, uneven currents that contrasted sharply with the oppressive heat of the day. It carried with it the first honest hint of night’s chill, brushing against exposed skin and cutting through lingering warmth in a way that felt almost invasive after the relentless sun. The air changed in character, no longer burning, but instead biting in subtle, creeping ways that made the transition feel more dangerous than relief.
Yuto reached forward and tapped the armored surface of the beetle beneath him, the metallic contact ringing faintly in the thinning air.
"Stop."
The command was obeyed immediately. The creature lowered itself with controlled precision, its massive frame settling into the sand until all motion ceased and the desert around them briefly regained stillness.
Yuto dismounted in a single fluid motion, rolling his shoulders once as if trying to ease the tension that had built up during hours of continuous movement. His gaze lifted toward the others as they gathered nearby, the fading light casting long shadows behind them.
"We need to find a place to camp," he said.
Maya’s eyes moved slowly across the horizon, tracing the uneven contours of the desert as the last light of day slipped further away. After a moment, she exhaled softly, a sound that carried more uncertainty than comfort.
"Easier said than done," she replied.
Tami frowned immediately, his attention shifting outward as if only now fully processing their surroundings.
"Why?" he asked.
Maya tilted her head slightly, her gaze never leaving the distant landscape.
"Look around."
The desert responded to her words with its usual emptiness, stretching endlessly in every direction without interruption. Jagged cliffs rose sporadically in the distance like fractured teeth, and low hills broke the monotony only slightly, but there was nothing resembling shelter. No caves carved into stone, no natural overhangs, no formations offering protection from wind or night or whatever else might come crawling through darkness.
Only exposure.
Only open space.
Tami’s expression shifted as he took in the landscape more carefully, as though only now recognizing how thoroughly they had been left without cover.
"So where are we supposed to sleep?" he asked bluntly, the frustration in his voice cutting through the growing chill.
Yuto scratched lightly at the side of his head, his eyes following the same horizon, clearly arriving at the same conclusion without needing to say it aloud.
For a moment, no one responded.
The wind passed through them again, slightly colder now, carrying fine grains of sand that brushed against clothing and skin with quiet persistence.
Maya lifted her gaze toward the darkening sky and remained silent for a while longer, as though weighing options that were all equally unfavorable.
Eventually, she spoke.
"We go higher."
Tami reacted immediately, shaking his head with visible resistance.
"No way," he said. "Did you forget what happened the last time we climbed a hill?"
Yuto gave a small, indifferent shrug and had already begun walking toward a nearby rise of rock and sand before the argument could continue.
"We don’t exactly have a choice, do we?"
As he moved, he raised one hand slightly into the air.
"Shinny."
There was no delay.
The swordsman appeared beside him instantly, as though the space he occupied had simply decided to accommodate him again without resistance.
Yuto turned his head slightly toward the beetle.
"Dismiss."
The massive summon responded without hesitation, its armored form dissolving into fragments of dark energy that broke apart and sank into nothingness, leaving only disturbed sand where it had stood moments before.
He gestured toward the hill ahead.
"Carry me."
Maya blinked once.
Tami stared.
A brief pause followed, thick with disbelief that had not yet decided how seriously to treat the request.
Then Tami pointed directly at him.
"You’re so lazy."
Yuto shrugged without stopping.
"Why waste energy when I’ve got Shinny and Beetle?"
Shinny, standing nearby, nodded enthusiastically as if fully endorsing the logic.
Then, without warning, he stepped forward, lifted Yuto cleanly off the ground, and held him in a bridal carry as though this were the most natural interpretation of the instruction.
Yuto froze instantly.
"Hey," he said, voice tightening with immediate discomfort. "No. Put me down properly."
Shinny paused mid-step, tilted his head slightly, then made a small apologetic sound before adjusting his grip and shifting Yuto onto his back instead.
"Better," Yuto muttered, still visibly unsettled but no longer actively protesting.
Together, they began ascending the hill.
By the time they reached the summit, the last remnants of daylight had fully surrendered to night.
The top of the rise flattened into a broad, uneven plateau, exposed to the open sky yet more stable than the shifting desert below. Wind moved more freely here, passing across the elevated ground without obstruction, carrying with it the colder breath of night as the temperature continued to drop.
The three ethereals moved quickly to establish a makeshift camp, their actions efficient and practiced in a way that suggested experience born from necessity. Maya and Tami each produced sleeping gear from their packs, laying them out across the rocky surface with quiet coordination, while Yuto remained still for a moment longer, observing their preparations without adding anything of his own.
He had nothing to lay out.
Nothing to unpack.
Nothing to prepare.
After a brief pause, he simply lowered himself to the ground and sat without comment.
Maya retrieved a small firestarter from her belongings and struck it against flint, sending brief showers of sparks into a carefully arranged bundle of dry tinder. It took several attempts before a flame finally caught, small at first, then steadily growing as it fed on the prepared fuel. The fire pushed back against the encroaching darkness, casting warm, flickering light across their small gathering and softening the harshness of the desert night for the first time since they had stopped.
Food was brought out and placed near the fire to heat, the scent slowly rising as warmth returned to it.
For a while, only the sound of the flame and the faint movement of wind filled the silence between them.
Then Yuto spoke.
"How did you two meet?"
Maya did not respond immediately, her gaze remaining on the fire as if the question had arrived slightly outside of expected rhythm.
Tami answered first.
"I entered the astral realm and got thrown into a massive oasis."
He leaned back slightly, eyes narrowing as the memory surfaced more clearly.
"It wasn’t safe. Not even close. I fought my way out, but I was badly injured."
His voice lowered slightly, losing some of its earlier edge.
"I barely made it to solid ground before I passed out."
