I wake just as the sun crests the horizon, its light spilling through the narrow opening like a quiet promise of another day. For a moment, I lie still, staring upward as fragments of yesterday replay in my mind. The desert. The bandits. Tricky's wings cutting through the sky.
Then my body reminds me.
A dull ache spreads through my limbs as I stretch, bruises blooming beneath my skin where fists and sand had punished me. The bed beneath me is soft, almost luxurious compared to the merciless ground outside these walls. I sit up slowly, letting the soreness settle, and exhale.
Whatever this world throws at me next, I will face it.
Downstairs, I find Tricky already awake. She stands near the fountain, wings wrapped in fresh bandages. Dried blood still stains parts of them where the bullets tore through. When she notices me, her sharp posture eases just a little.
"Morning," she says.
"Morning."
She studies me for a second longer than necessary. "I have a question," she says at last. "Astro… how did you end up here?"
I hesitate. My chest tightens as memories stir, ones I thought I had already buried. I take a slow breath.
"It's a long road," I begin. "After university, I thought everything would finally fall into place. A good job. A real future." I let out a dry laugh. "Instead, I ended up stuck waiting tables in some backwater restaurant, taking orders under a boss who made every day feel like punishment."
Tricky nods, understanding clear in her eyes. "Life has a way of disappointing us."
"It really does," I say quietly. "Then I found VTubers. Watching them felt like escaping for a while. Like finding a place where I belonged. So I decided to become one myself. I saved up, hired artists. Built my avatar."
Her wings twitch slightly. "And then?"
"I was supposed to stream for the first time last night," I say, the words heavier now. "I was on my way to pick up a new camera when I saw a kid about to get hit by a truck. I didn't think. I just moved."
I swallow.
"When I opened my eyes again, I was in the desert."
Tricky steps closer and rests a hand on my shoulder, her touch surprisingly gentle. "You risked your life for someone else," she says. "That says enough."
Before I can respond, the air trembles.
A deep, thunderous boom rolls across the desert, shaking the stone beneath our feet. Another follows. Then another.
We rush outside.
Bandits circle the pyramid, far more than before. Wooden frames loom behind them, crude catapults loaded and ready. The sight turns my stomach.
I take my place beside Tricky, the sun blazing above us, sand stretching endlessly in every direction. For a brief moment, we stand together in silence, facing them as equals.
"Ready?" she asks.
I inhale slowly. "Yeah," I say, hoping my voice sounds steadier than I feel.
The attack begins.
Stones crash against the pyramid, dust and debris raining down. Bandits surge forward. I have no magic. No power. Just instinct and resolve.
I move when one lunges for me, ducking under a wild swing and driving my shoulder into his chest. The impact jars my bones. Pain flares, but I keep moving. Another comes at me from the side. I twist, catching his wrist and wrenching it aside before striking his jaw.
Out of the corner of my eye, Tricky becomes a force of devastation.
She calls upon the Cursed Sands, and ghostly hands erupt from the ground, dragging screaming men into the earth. Razor Sand Rings tear through the battlefield in controlled arcs, slicing weapons from hands with terrifying precision.
I use the chaos.
I strike where openings appear, disarming one, tripping another, retreating before I am overwhelmed. Every movement costs me breath. My muscles burn. My vision blurs.
At one point, I stumble, barely catching myself before a blade finds my back.
Tricky lands beside me in a violent gust of wind.
"Back to back," she snaps.
We fight like that, instinctively, her magic and my timing weaving together. Slowly, painfully, the bandits fall. When the last of them flees into the dunes, silence settles over the desert once more.
I climb back to the top of the pyramid, lungs burning, sweat dripping down my spine. Tricky stands a short distance away, staring out at the horizon.
"We did it," I say, joining her.
She does not look pleased. "They should never have gotten this close. Something has changed."
"What do you think it is?" I ask.
She shakes her head. "I don't know."
Without another word, she disappears into the pyramid.
I stay behind, letting the wind wash over me. The desert stretches endlessly below, ancient and indifferent. Despite everything, it feels almost peaceful.
When Tricky returns, her arms are full of clothes. She hands them to me.
"Astro," she says, her voice steady. "You earned my trust. I will help you survive this world."
I accept the garments, warmth spreading through my chest. "Thanks, Tricky. I'm glad I'm not alone."
She nods. "We will search for answers."
She summons her ghostly guardians, assigning them to protect the pyramid, then utters an incantation. The sand shifts and swallows the structure whole.
Magic still amazes me.
"Come on," she calls. "We move."
We travel until the desert gives way to stone and scrub, the air cooling as the sun climbs higher. By midday, we reach a quiet oasis tucked between cliffs.
"We'll rest here," Tricky says.
As night approaches and the camp settles into silence, I stare into the water's reflection and let the weight of everything sink in.
This world is dangerous.
But it is also full of possibility.