Leaves broke beneath Remy's shoes as they walked with their group, which they were now the leader of. The forest trail was dry at the moment and it would be easy to attract the attention of wild animals just by walking; the leaves crunched, letting the prey with good hearing run off before they approached, and the break of a branch could cause the more dangerous animals to find them, so they had to be careful with every step they took.
Birds chirping restlessly was the only sound besides the sounds human beings make to function, and none of them dared to break the silence between them. Remy was leading Hazel, Ocean and Aurora through the forest. They tried to keep the group in one piece even though they weren't that great at taking charge of anything. Hazel wanted to lead, but the others ended up deciding Remy was a better choice, since they were friends with the previous leader.
Aurora was staring at her own hands as she walked with the others. She still wanted to explore what she could do with the newfound power of healing. Ocean was watching her. He thought finding out about your ability for the first time was always the best moment. He knew what it felt like. And Hazel? Well, she was still herself. Maybe the oldest, but with the wildest ideas.
"How much longer do we have to walk? My legs are getting sore," Hazel whines.
"You're the one who chose to live this far from town. We just need to walk a mile or two-," Remy was saying before Aurora cut them off.
"Two whole miles? You said it wasn't that far when we started," she said.
"Well, I'm sure Aatos would have done the same to motivate us to walk," Remy replied.
"Aatos this, Aatos that. You're always going on about him. What about Althea?! She's the one who took us in and raised us," Hazel defended.
Remy didn't know what to say, so he kept quiet. Aurora, on the other hand found a small lizard in the leaves. Some of its tiny green scales were broken. When she picked it up, it was suddenly fully healthy again. With a big grin, she set it back down on the ground.
Unfortunately, Ocean didn't see the miracle. He was too focused on the smell of smoke coming from somewhere. It got stronger as they exited the forest and walked towards the dock.
Aurora lifted her gaze from the ground to look at the now visible sea. It wasn't as calm as you would think the sea is. There was a gray cloud of smoke coming from afar and a ship sinking as smoke emited from it. Maybe there was even a silhouetto of two people fleeing it on a smaller boat, rowing away from the island. She wasn't sure where. All she knew what that the nearest island was really far away from Etherium.
"We need to help the people on the ship?" Aurora exclaimed.
"No. It's too dangerous. Does any of us even know how to swim or put down a fire?" Remy said.
"You're the one responsible if they die, then," Hazel said, still salty about the fact they made her walk somewhere so far without telling her where they were going. That's when Remy finally snapped.
"And now I'm a murderer to you?! I don't know how to lead, okay?! I'm just trying to keep all of us in one piece! I can't handle the fact we lost two people we loved and now I suddenly have to be strong!" Remy screamed at them, letting out all the three years of frustration that had been building up inside them since Aatos died. The others froze at this.
In a few moments, Ocean nodded in approval and understanding. Letting out strong emotions was a better choice than keeping them sealed inside forever.