When the first drop of rain fell, they moved into the cave, but brought some firewood with them in case it got cold. Something Alice mentioned about the smoke leaving the cave through low pressure, so they did not have to worry about a smoky mess.
And cold it became. When the winds picked up and rain started to relentlessly pelt the ground, the temperature dropped drastically. Since Zero was no longer the same as a Mundane human, the cold was not threatening per se. But it was unpleasant.
So Caelum offered to make a fire.
In the wilderness, surrounded by the surprisingly comforting sounds of rain, three kids huddled next to a fire placed near the edge of the cave. A perfect atmosphere for conversation.
"Hey Zero, do you have memory loss? "
'Mind reader!'
Zero coughed, then hesitated. Caelum turned to look at him with an interested expression.
"Sorry, that came out wrong."
"Uh… that, why would you think that?"
"Well, it's just that you seem confused about everything I talk about. I mean, you did not even know the Pythagorean theorem. And from your accent, I'm guessing the place you came from would entail that you had plenty of knowledge on how to use the Nexus."
It seemed Zero's lies had come undone. Well, he had not technically told a direct lie, but a lie of omission could still be considered one.
Zero sighed.
"Yes, I don't remember anything. As for why, my best guess is this curse I have, but I don't know what it is. It shows up as unidentified in my scroll… or I think you call it the Nexus?"
Alice tilted her head and thought for a moment. With the warm lighting from the fire, she seemed quite studious, perhaps.
Caelum asked the first question, "Why did you feel the need to hide that?"
His voice did not show hurt from being lied to, but genuine curiosity. But before Zero could respond with whatever answer did not include the coliseum, Alice interjected.
"Hold that thought for a moment. Caelum, I know you are speaking English now, but talk in the language you grew up with."
Since Alice had joined them, Caelum had been speaking in their language, but reverted back to what he first spoke upon request.
"What would you like me to say, Alice?"
This time, it was Zero's turn to be curious about what Alice was getting at.
"What you said is fine. Do you perhaps know of a place called… Earth?"
"No, I do not. Is it a foreign land?"
Alice leaned her head back against the cave wall and groaned.
"Yes, I guess it is something of a foreign land."
Zero watched the girl go through some sort of existential crisis. Or at least it seemed like she was going through one.
"Alice, what are you getting at exactly? What's so bad about not knowing of Earth?"
Alice sighed, then did not say anything else for a while. Zero and Caelum let the howl of wind and rain take back over and chose to tend to the fire, adding a few twigs.
When Alice finally spoke, she sounded rather grim, but a small smile played on her face. Her eyes carried that same gleam that Azarax had when he spoke of leaving the coliseum and traveling Era-Terre.
"Take it from my perspective. My world has been swallowed, perhaps by this one. It is likely gone forever… and I will never return to it."
Alice was visibly shaking now, but it was not from the cold.
After a moment, Caelum leaned over and placed his hand comfortingly on Alice's shoulder.
"It is time to sleep. I can take first watch."
Alice seemed to calm down a bit, at least enough to respond.
"It's fine, I have a lot to think about, so I'll be up anyway. Both of you were up today well before me, and fought that snake, so it's only right if you all sleep first."
Although Zero's curiosity just peaked, the mention of sleep peaked his tiredness as well. He was up almost the entirety of the night before, and the lack of sleep was making him dizzy. It also seemed like Alice was not in any mood to answer questions.
"I'll take that offer then. Goodnight, and wake me up first since I'm sleeping with the Harvest Talisman."
"I suppose I will too then. Goodnight, Zero, Alice."
"Yes, Goodnight. I'll keep tending to the fire unless it becomes too smoky."
With the howl of wind around him, Zero quickly fell into the embrace of sleep.
It was still stormy when Alice shook Zero awake. The cave was entirely devoid of light, and Zero did not have the moon or stars to provide his night vision enough light to work. So he was just as blind as a Mundane human would be. Despite not having a whole night of rest, Zero still felt somewhat rested, thanks to the Harvest Talisman.
Alice whispered into the darkness. Due to the storm, it was barely audible.
"Hey, you awake. I saved the rest of the wood for a fire tomorrow, and it was getting smoky anyway. Sorry if it's a bit cold."
"Yeah, I'm awake. Good morning, I suppose."
"Ha-ha. Can you summon that sword of yours?"
"Sure?"
Zero summoned the sword and waited for Alice to say something. After a bit, she responded.
"Uh, can you make it light up?"
"Not that I know of?"
"It lights up all the time when you're fighting."
"I didn't really notice, guess I wasn't paying attention. Let me try something."
'Light up, lumos, light, light, glow…'
Zero thought through any luminous quality he could to no avail.
"I apologize, it seems I can't at the moment, but I'll keep…"
A crimson hue emitted from Valiant Blade and illuminated the cave to some degree. With his Abyssal blood, Zero was able to make out most of everything. The blade also felt lighter for some reason.
"Got it."
"Nice… So well, I guess I'm just going to ask if you would like to know a bit about Earth. It's where you're from."
"I guess, I would like to know. I'm a bit curious about how I got here after all."
Alice nodded, then began.