Amukelo: The Burdened Path

The fire crackled softly, casting flickering shadows across the cave walls as the group settled into a brief moment of silence. Amukelo shifted uncomfortably, still adjusting to the presence of so many people after being alone for so long. He wasn't sure where to sit, where to look, or what to say. The awkwardness weighed heavily on him.

Then, a low groan broke through the stillness. Amukelo immediately turned his head toward the source, his muscles tensing slightly out of habit. The others did the same. Idin stirred.

He let out another groan, his fingers twitching slightly before he blinked blearily up at the cave ceiling. His breathing was still slightly uneven, and it was clear he was still shaking off the effects of the paralysis.

"What… happened?" His voice was gruff, tired. Then, after a moment, realization dawned on his face. "Ahh… right. The moths."

He pushed himself up onto his elbows, his movements slow and heavy as he tried to reorient himself. His sharp eyes scanned the cave, flickering to the fire, then to Bral. "Did you deal with them?"

Bral, who had been leaning against the cave wall, nodded. "Yeah. We dealt with them."

Idin let out a slow breath and rubbed his forehead, wincing slightly. Then, as he lowered his hand, his gaze landed on Amukelo.

His eyes narrowed slightly, assessing. "Who's that?"

Bral, already expecting this, let out a short sigh before answering.

"His name is Amukelo." He nodded toward him. "And he's the reason we survived. When I was left alone, in the last moment, he saved me. And from there, we dealt with the rest of the moths together."

Idin's expression remained neutral as he absorbed the information. Then, without hesitation, he pushed himself up, standing to his full height. He was even taller than Amukelo had initially thought, broad and built for combat. His armor creaked slightly as he moved.

Then, he extended his hand.

"Thank you for that," he said simply, his voice firm but carrying a hint of sincerity beneath the gruffness.

Amukelo hesitated for a fraction of a second, not used to such direct gratitude, before standing as well and taking the handshake. Idin's grip was strong, but not crushing, and the gesture, though simple, carried a weight of respect.

"It's nothing," Amukelo muttered, feeling awkward under the attention.

Before he could say anything else, another sound echoed in the cave—a softer groan this time.

All heads turned toward Bao, the last of the group to awaken.

She stirred slightly, her fingers twitching first, then her body shifting. Unlike Idin, she took her time regaining awareness, blinking a few times before her eyes fully opened.

She sat up slowly, her expression blank at first. Then, as her senses returned, her gaze flickered around the cave. It landed on Bral first, then Pao, then Idin. Finally, it settled on Amukelo.

Her expression shifted slightly.

She furrowed her brows, tilting her head slightly, clearly confused. "…Who's that?"

Bral let out a deep, exhausted sigh, rubbing his temples. "Saying it again and again…" He glanced at Bao, his tone carrying a hint of playful frustration. "He is the reason we were saved. When I was the last one fighting those moths, he saved me."

Bao nodded slowly, accepting the information without much reaction. Then, she pushed herself to her feet.

She took a few steps closer to Amukelo, her eyes scanning him. Then she sniffed the air. And her brows furrowed deeper.

Without any hesitation, she narrowed her eyes and simply said, "good."

Amukelo blinked. That's it?

Then, before he could even process that strange interaction, Bao turned sharply to Bral. "So. Is he going to travel with us?"

The directness of the question caught Amukelo completely off guard.

He stood there, awkwardly frozen, unsure of how to respond to being talked about as if he wasn't right there. He shifted slightly, rubbing the back of his neck, before finally exhaling and muttering, "Uh… I don't know?"

Before Bral could respond, Idin clapped a hand on Amukelo's shoulder.

"Don't worry about her," he said, smirking slightly. "She's moody. But to be honest, I don't know how you pissed her off already."

Bral let out a short chuckle. "Yeah, you could be a little bit friendlier, Bao."

Bao crossed her arms. "He smells terrible. Like rotten flesh."

There was a moment of silence.

Bral slowly turned to Amukelo, his expression neutral, before leaning in slightly and whispering, "Well… can't disagree."

Then, Pao who had been silent up until this point suddenly perked up.

"Actually, regarding that!" she said brightly, clapping her hands together. "I have a spell that makes clothes smell like vanilla! But he'd have to clean his clothes from all the blood and dirt first."

Then a silence fell. Bral, Idin, and Bao all turned to look at her with deadpan expressions.

Bral was the first to speak. "How did you even get that spell?"

Bao rubbed her forehead. "You really love magic, don't you, sis?"

Pao grinned, her green eyes sparkling, and nodded enthusiastically.

Bral, cleared his throat and straightened up. "But anyway, let's take care of trivial things later," he said. His eyes flickered toward Bao briefly, clearly done with her complaints about Amukelo's smell. Then, he raised his voice slightly, shifting the conversation.

"But that's actually a good question, Bao." His gaze shifted toward Amukelo. "Are you traveling somewhere specific, or are you just wandering the wilderness aimlessly?"

Amukelo straightened slightly. "I'm currently traveling to a town called Llyn," he said. "But I'm not sure whether I'm navigating correctly. I lost my map, and from what I remember, this was the way."

Bral raised an eyebrow, leaning forward slightly. "Llyn? Well… you were a little off."

Amukelo blinked. "What?"

"I mean, if you came from the direction where you saved me, you weren't heading exactly there," Bral clarified. "I think you might even midd Llyn entirely"

Amukelo frowned slightly. Of course. He had been relying on memory and rough estimates, but apparently, he had drifted off course. Not surprising, but still frustrating.

Bral suddenly grinned. "But actually, this is great."

Amukelo looked at him, confused. "How is this great?"

Bral chuckled. "Because we're heading that way too."

Amukelo stared for a moment.

"So maybe we can travel together," Bral continued, his grin widening. "We can show you the right path, and you can reinforce us if something like this happens again. What do you think?"

Amukelo hesitated. Traveling with a group? That was something he hadn't even considered. Ever since he had left the village, he had moved alone—hunted alone, fought alone, survived alone. Traveling with them meant adjusting, meant… interacting.

But at the same time, having people around could be useful. He wouldn't have to constantly watch his back while sleeping. He wouldn't have to navigate blind.

He sighed quietly, then nodded. "I think that's a good idea."

Bral clapped his hands together. "Great." Then, he turned to the others. "So, does anyone have anything against it?"

Idin, who had been listening calmly, shook his head. "Not at all."

Pao simply said, "Nothing."

Bao let out a long, dramatic sigh, crossing her arms. "That's fine. But he needs to do something about his smell. It's unbearable."

Amukelo tensed slightly. Was she seriously still going on about that?

Bral rolled his eyes. "Yeah, yeah… you're exaggerating."

Then, without warning, Bral threw an arm around Amukelo's neck, pulling him in slightly. Amukelo froze immediately, stiff as a board. The closeness felt wrong. He wasn't used to being touched—not in camaraderie, not in anything.

"Welcome to our small squad until we get to Llyn," Bral said with a grin. "Let's hope for the best cooperation."

Amukelo smiled awkwardly, his discomfort clear.

Then, Bral paused and sniffed.

Slowly, his smile faltered. His expression shifted slightly, and without a word, he stepped back, releasing Amukelo.

Then, in a not-so-quiet whisper, he muttered to Bao, "Okay, maybe you're not exaggerating."

Amukelo heard it. His face deadpanned instantly.

Bral straightened, pretending nothing had just happened. "Yeah, whatever." He clapped his hands together again. "Let's spend the night here. Tomorrow, we continue and take care of everything we need to take care of." His eyes briefly flickered toward Amukelo, clearly implying one of those things would be dealing with his 'wild-man' state.

Idin nodded, rubbing his stomach. "Okay, but first—let's eat."

He reached into his pack, pulling out small, neatly wrapped packages. Without hesitation, he handed one to each of them—including Amukelo.

Amukelo took the small wrapped item and turned it over in his hands curiously. "What's this?"

Idin chuckled. "Supplies. You can eat it."

Amukelo carefully unwrapped the paper, revealing a dense, compact piece of food. It looked nothing like what he was used to eating. No bones, no skin, no visible signs of an animal or plant—just a compressed, uniform shape. He sniffed it cautiously.

Then, his eyes widened slightly.

"Wow… so cool." He looked at Idin, genuinely impressed. "You don't have to hunt every day?"

Idin grinned. "Yeah, it's pretty convenient. These are travel rations—designed to last a long time and give enough energy without needing to cook."

Amukelo took a bite.

The texture was dense, slightly dry, but packed with an oddly satisfying mix of flavors. It wasn't anything extravagant, but it was far better than the raw, charred meat he had been living on for months.

"This is amazing," Amukelo muttered between bites.

Bral laughed, shaking his head. "You really have been living like a wild animal, huh?"

Amukelo chewed slower. He didn't respond. Instead, he just kept eating. For the first time in a long while, he was eating with people. He was talking with people. And despite how unnatural it felt… It wasn't so bad.