The Island's Center was similar to how Cullen imagined it, but not quite.
Tents and small buildings were scattered around the area, devoid of The Island's usual vines and plant life.
In fact, no vines came through this area. Cullen wondered how that was possible.
There were hundreds of people, much more than Lucas described there to be. However, it was easy to tell that they were mostly refugees from Kamikaze attacks.
The mood was solemn, understandably, considering what these people had gone through. Not everyone who was brought to The Island could be saved. If a normal person even touched a vine, it would mean the end for them unless a Gifted showed up in time.
In fact, almost everyone Cullen could see had visible injuries.
They attracted the attention of a few people there as they walked in, one of whom approached them.
He was a middle-aged man with neat black hair and a slim physique. His formal outfit made it obvious he hadn't been here for long or even set foot in the jungle.
"Lucas! It's good to see you back! And you brought company, too."
"Of course, Logan! Do you recognize these three? The ones August was bringing to the Academy?"
Lucas spoke cheerfully, but they could tell that even his attitude was affected by the dismal mood of everyone here.
Logan glanced among Flora, Cullen, and Henry as his eyes slowly widened.
"That's right! August will be glad to hear you're alive and well; he feels extremely guilty for losing you guys."
He took a phone out of his pocket and began to look through it, furrowing his brows.
"I'll put you four in the queue to leave. It looks like it will be sometime tomorrow morning, so I'll show you where to stay for the night."
Flora smiled, looking at Henry.
"We can finally leave, and you'll be safe at the Academy. Just a little bit longer."
Henry's bravery surprised Cullen and Lucas for his age. For the entire trip, he had not complained once. He listened and did whatever Lucas said while staying close to Flora.
"Yes, and you're very safe here, as well. We have guards that are more than capable of protecting this area, even more so now that Lucas is here. "
Logan led them to a tent filled with dozens of old bunk beds that were in terrible shape, yet still better than Cullen's living conditions in the city.
"Sorry for the conditions; we just recently put this place together for the people stranded here. Luckily, we've stopped the Kamikazes on the mainland and have almost accounted for every victim."
Cullen looked at Logan strangely and asked:
"How did they stop the Kamikazes? Wouldn't they just keep coming through the ocean floor?"
"Yes, but a new defense system has been developed to detect them and prevent their arrival in the city. On top of that, every remaining one was killed."
Flora interrupted them, asking if Henry had a bathroom nearby. Lucas and Logan also said they had to deal with a few things, so Cullen was left alone for the first time in a while.
He pulled out all of his belongings to examine them. A few weapons, three compasses, and the core from the Withered Plant.
'I wonder what would happen if I broke the core here… Its body is so far away. I'm not sure if it would even work. What would happen if the body were destroyed?'
Cullen was filled with questions, but then something strange caught his eye.
'That's… not possible, is it?'
He walked around the camp for a bit and confirmed his suspicion.
"Cullen! Excited to finally get back to the city?"
Cullen jumped, not expecting to find Lucas behind him, inches from his face. The surprise didn't last too long, though. He was used to Lucas acting this way.
'Does he know? He can't…'
"Something wrong?"
As Cullen realized he was acting strangely, he composed himself.
"I'm just more than ready to leave this place…"
Lucas's mood darkened a little.
"I agree... What happened here is truly terrible. Just one more night and it'll be over! Oh, and you're bunking with me, by the way."
Hearing that, Cullen knew what he had to do.
After Lucas left, Cullen found a secluded spot where nobody was watching and pierced his dagger into the Withered Plant's core.
'It should be late enough now…'
Cullen was below Lucas, next to Flora's and Henry's bunk. Both of them were asleep while Lucas was meditating. Cullen then took out a small necklace, containing an ivory stone with an unnerving eye carved into it.
This was what Cullen had received from the Withered Plant's core. By wearing it, the user would go unnoticed, being able to sneak past others. It didn't hide him, but it made the people around him convince themselves he wasn't there. Cullen wasn't sure if it was strong enough to escape Lucas's senses, but he had no other choice.
He wore the necklace and left the tent swiftly but quietly.
In truth, Cullen was afraid.
Even with the horrors of The Island, he would much rather be out there with them than face what awaited him in The City.
He didn't want to imagine how Flora, Lucas, and Henry would look at him after they found out.
So he ran.
Far into the jungle, ready to kill The Island or die trying.
***
"What do you mean he left?"
Lucas had just woken Flora a few hours before sunrise.
"I don't know how, but he slipped past my senses. I only realized around an hour ago. After looking around, I'm sure he isn't anywhere in this camp."
Flora was in disbelief.
"Then where did he go? The only place he could go is back into The Island, but why would he do that?"
By now, Henry had woken up and was listening to their conversation.
"I think I know why, and you probably do too. He's been off ever since he brought up The Island's core."
Yes, Flora did notice that. It's almost like Cullen was afraid of returning to the city. But she also knew he didn't want to stay on The Island either.
So why did he run away?
And worst of all, he hadn't even told them.
"One of my abilities I can spend my QI on is a locator. If I focus on a person hard enough, it will give me a vision of where they are. The problem is, every time I try to think of Cullen, my mind goes blank. It also costs significantly more to use. I think that's part of the reason why he was able to elude my senses."
Cullen had never been able to do anything like that, but they both knew how crafty he was.
'Could it be that plant…'
"So, we need to go find him before he does something stupid. I trust that Henry is safe here, if we leave now we can-"
"Flora," Lucas interrupted, "I know you want to help him, and I do too, but we won't be able to find him, especially if he is purposely avoiding us. The Island is just too big."
Flora paused for a second.
"But we know where he's going."
Lucas narrowed his eyes.
"It's too dangerous, not to mention it would be impossible for us to find."
Flora knew he was right, but she didn't believe Lucas would give up. They were his students, after all.
"I contacted a few people; they should be here soon to help us catch him. It's best if we stay out of it."
As Lucas left, all Flora could do was stand there, clenching her fists. Finding him on The Island would indeed be impossible, probably even more challenging than finding the core.
But there had to be a way.
***
Outside, a helicopter descended in the camp, its whirring growing louder as it landed. As three well-dressed men stepped out, the whole camp seemed to quiet in response to their presence.
Two of them were August and Greye.
"Lucas, it's good to see you doing all right. I didn't expect my best fighter to get defeated that easily."
Lucas responded, forcing out a smile:
"Yes, well, I was being far more reckless than I should have."
August forcefully laughed, then his expression gradually dimmed.
"Thank you, by the way, for taking care of my responsibility. I should never have left those kids alone in the first place. And it's not your fault that Cullen ran away. I'm not sure how much you know, but a lot has happened to him recently."
August paused for a second, then quieted his tone.
"Do you have any clue where he may have run off to?"
Lucas knew exactly where he was going, but it wouldn't help them at all.
"He wants to kill The Island, so he will find the core and go there. Sadly, I believe he is more than capable of locating it. But he won't be able to destroy it, and we don't know where to stop him."
August frowned, his eyes turning cold.
"Actually, we do know where the core is."