Replenish

I still remember slashing down that deer on the beach with Domin, bonding with Red before we moved, I remember it all so vividly and the pain of not being able to go back to that struck my heart with a nauseous feeling. All because I was such a high-value target for those other White Stones, my friends lost their lives.

Ever since Carl walked into Orion's base, he unknowingly gave us a higher chance for survival. I know for a fact Talion would never kill anybody on my side, but with Elo dead and Zeal hurt, on top of Orion's base being destroyed and slowed down because of it, he gave us the chance to fight back.

So, with the sadness converted into pure wrath in my bones, I made a vow to myself. I will get everybody off of this Isle and to a better place, or I will die trying. Nobody else will lose their lives because of me.

I rested my head on the pillow and thought about my time on the beach, smiling while reminiscing.

"Good morning sleepy head!" Dani said. Curtains were thrown from the window in my room, and I blocked the sunlight with my forearm.

"That wasn't very nice." I squinted my eyes to see Dani standing right in front of me with a huge smile on her face.

"Come on! We're going to have breakfast together with Charlie, Mandi, Carl, and Lia!" Dani said, pushing me out of bed. She moved me forward with such a force that I wasn't even walking, yet still moving forward. Once we made it out of the room, I could see everybody sitting on a table right next to a food stand.

"Where do you guys get meat from if all the wildlife has vanished?" I asked, sitting down next to Carl and Dani.

"It's stored stuff in the freezer. We have enough to go well over a year, so eat at your leisure!" The cook said, flipping something in a pan.

"There he is, with no injuries at all." Charlie scoffed, looking to the side.

Dani stuck up for me, squinting her eyes with her arms crossed, "at least he was on the frontlines to begin with, and not hiding behind Ullr and me." Charlie scrambled for justification, while Mandi laughed by his side.

"It's okay that you're afraid! I'm sure Dani doesn't really mind," I said, looking over to Dani. I looked to Dani. "You fought on the frontlines with Ullr?" With a proud smile, she nodded. "I was the MVP! Well, besides Ullr, but strength was never my strong suit anyway."

"Say, what are we going to do about Carl's hand? He can't regenerate it, can he?" I asked. Everybody looked at me.

"And what about your arm? Shouldn't it be back by now?" Mandi asked, peering at the space on the right side of my body.

"Well, I know I can regenerate it, but Carl can't, so do we get him a prosthesis?" I said, turning to Tavian. He nodded, setting his hands against the table and leaning towards Carl.

"That sounds like a great idea! I'd love my hand back… is there anything like that for eyes?"

I turned to Lia, noticing her silence. "What's wrong? You're awfully quiet," I said. Lia fumbled around nervously, looking up at me alone.

"I'm a quiet person… and I just don't feel like I really belong in your group." She admitted. I pondered the thought, staring up at the green and white umbrella above us.

"Of course, you belong with us. We're friends now, right?" I smiled at her. Lia nodded, playing with the holes in the table.

"I suppose we can discuss what we're going to do next. Are any doctors nearby?" I asked. I turned towards Griff and Xavier, the prominent doctors in our group. I was looking for people who could give Carl a prosthesis.

"Let's just eat first and worry about that later, okay?" Dani told us. I agreed to Dani's terms and ordered the food. It seemed like everybody got burgers of some sort, so I joined in on the fun.

"So, Lia. Why are the tips of your hair dyed red? How did you do that?" Dani asked, leaning on the table towards her.

"My mom did it when she was around. It was customary to dye one side of your head red once you got a job in the village, and to dye the other once you become an adult." Lia explained. Dani was still pushing for information, asking why the color red was customary.

"There once was a legend in my village about a girl named Ultima, one who fought off legions of soldiers and bad guys and saved her village. Ultima had red hair when she did so because of the blood that got on her, so the red tips resembled a portion of courage Ultima once had to defend her village. It's just a silly story, but that's why." Lia explained.

"That's so cool! I always thought I'd look good in red, hey, do you think we can try it someday?" Dani begged Lia.

"I'd love to do it again, but this time I need a brighter red. There's a certain berry on this island I used to dye it, so maybe there will be some in Scorched." Lia said, getting equally as excited this time around. The two continued their conversation and I turned to Charlie, Mandi, and Carl as our food arrived.

"For the manly man! And the pirate! And the girl! And the White Stone!" The waiter shouted. Charlie, Carl, Mandi, and I were handed the food and he walked off. Charlie seemed annoyed, Carl seemed confused, but Mandi and I started to dig in.

The food was amazing; I felt like I scarfed it all down. Soon after, Dani and Lia's food arrived. "Ehh? Why did yours get here before mine? I ordered before I came to get you." She said to me, turning back to Lia.

"Does that stone hurt the back of your hand?" Mandi asked.

"No, it's just like a part of my hand, like with you guys. The only difference is how the back of my hand looks." I told her. She shook her head in disbelief, but even I knew what she was talking about. She was referring to my repeated use of strands.

"I'm not sure what they are, I'm just as lost as you, but Elo told me something kind of disturbing… there's somebody behind this, it isn't just a stone, it's a person… or a thing." I shared. "I'm almost inclined to try to take it out to see what he was talking about, but every time I do that a sharp pain fills my body and prevents me from actually getting it off. Therefore, I just leave it alone." I finished. Mandi felt satisfied with that answer, but I continued to stare at my stone while everybody else talked about other things.

I thought to myself, 'there's nothing in here, right?' as if it could hear me. I peered into it, trying to see a face, but nothing came out.

I decided to call it quits and as everybody finished their meals, we all got up to go talk to Tavian. "The day is nearing, it's the twenty-first now, right?" I asked as we approached him. Tavian nodded.

"We need a plan when it comes to getting in that base. Do you have anything?" I asked Tavian. He shook his head, leaning against the railing on the edge of the base.

We had walked away from the food stands and tables and stood upon the same damaged platforms that we fought Ethos and Logos on a couple of days ago. It felt like a few hours ago considering I've been living in a hospital bed since I arrived here.

"Don't expect things to go according to a plan. It's all on a limb. I don't know what kind of strengths Orion has since I left his base, and I don't know how capable he truly is. We took out a large portion of his base by blowing that coliseum. Internal explosives in that base were set off thanks to Ellie's placement and she reported that a lot more than just that coliseum was destroyed. His throne room, half of the village surrounding his castle, and several other food deposits were destroyed and set on fire when those explosives were set off. Orion's village is heading towards a dark time, they'll have to start eating their stockpiled vegetables they got from raids… or themselves to survive." Tavian explained to Carl and me.

Carl seemed a lot happier knowing his journey wasn't for nothing. "There's one thing I'm still concerned about though, how big is his fighting force?" I asked.

"Part of the barracks were destroyed in the explosion as well, meaning it's well under fifty percent now. But don't take that lightly, over twenty-thousand people were living there. If we're talking soldiers, then about five thousand, but those who are thrown into the fight in dire times, which is now, would make it about twelve thousand. Our force alone is about a thousand people, so we'd need a ratio of about twelve to one, but that's not even including Orion's top soldiers." Tavian continued.

"Noboki, Amera, June, Dante, and Moon, not in that order. Those are the fiercest warriors in his group and would more than likely be able to take on our forces by themselves without the help of the army. Fear not, those who know their strengths here will run away from those people, but that's where we come in. Ellie and I will take on Noboki and Amera. We're about on par with their skill, but as for June, Dante, and Moon… Well, we'd need fighters. Lia, if I can get you your strength back by giving you some nutrients that combat malnutrition, would you be able to take one?" Tavian asked her, and she instantly nodded.

"Great, now Sky, Carl, and Dani, all that's left are June and Dante. Together, those two would be hell even for Ellie and me, but if you find a way to split it up, both Dante and June can be stomped into the ground." I stopped Tavian.

"Are you putting Lia on this Moon person? Is she strong or something?" Tavian and Lia both nodded. "It's Orion's wife. She's known as the fastest one on this Isle in terms of fighting capability, but Lia could take her if we could restore her strength." Tavian commented. Lia nodded, flexing her thin arms to show off.