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RIKO BARRETT

Sixteen days until the rings dissolve.

I snuck through the house and sat by the front porch, pretending I was there this entire time. Joji found me not too long after.

"You busy?" he asked.

"Not really. Ilias and Jaime are with Clint and his family."

"Let's go for a walk then." He didn't let me answer, just leading the way. "You like those three?"

"I barely know them. But yeah. I enjoy their company. While I was Melissa, Ilias and Jaime were sincere. When Riko was revealed, they were indifferent. My name and title didn't matter to them. I was still the same person."

"And Clint?"

"He's a good guy. He was lost for a bit and has done some questionable things. But he's found his way again."

"We'll always find ourselves lost no matter what. It takes a person who knows themselves to find their way back. Only people who don't know who they are remain lost forever."

"How do you find your way back on your own?"

"You don't. You need to let others help and guide you back on the right path," Joji said. "That's the gunslinger boy. He let others help." He paused. "Back when we travelled alone and we encountered people who were injured, you always offered to help. Why not do the same for Clint?"

"I always offer to fix others who are broken. Just because Clint is a bit different doesn't mean he is."

"What about his vocal cords? I know it was a long time ago, but you could've tried."

"His voice caused him so much pain and torment that bringing it back just seems so cruel. He was broken before. Taking away his voice was what fixed him."

Joji suppressed a chuckle.

"That wasn't supposed to be funny."

"It's not that. Usually, noble girls don't care about commoners."

My eyebrows furrowed. "Don't lump with noble girls."

"I was trying to compliment you, dummy." The old man lightly bonked me on the head. "You're always trying to help others and don't demand special treatment. You make a genuine effort to get to know others. And it's not just so you can be different. This is really who you are."

The familiarity in Joji's voice made it sound like he had this exact conversation before.

I slowed my pace, forcing him to do the same. "You mentioned that we all get lost. I'm no exception. When I ran away from home, I wandered with no aim and got my skills taken advantage of. I even felt lonelier than I had ever been. But then you saw me in that tavern and talked to me. Everything snowballed from there. I now know what path to take and where it leads me. You know in all the stories where the princess gets saved by a knight? It feels like that but much more personal."

"I thought you weren't a princess?"

"It's the only metaphor I can think of." I paused to collect myself. "I told Clint earlier what I decided on. I will go home, but I won't stay there. I'll drop by to face my father and speak my mind—just as I should've had. After that, I'm leaving with nothing from my past holding me down."

"And what's your destination?"

"I don't know. Wherever the wind takes me." My eyes lingered on Clint's house. "But it has to be something fun. Something I'll look back on when I'm in a rocking chair pushing ninety. Memories with friends."

Before we were forced to stay because of the annual sandstorm, the Desperados planned on having an early morning meeting. We wanted it so that once Terra Kha'Sim ended, we were immediately on our way.

Even though I asked Joji to wake me up, it was well past dawn and the meeting had already begun. I was one of the few uninjured during our encounter with the Naga so I was running around treating everyone. And I do admit that I was exhausted come last night. He probably wanted me to rest.

I rushed to the village hall where everyone was gathered and found Jaime outside sitting cross-legged with her eyes closed.

"Is the meeting over?" I asked.

"No," she yawned. "It's been three hours and they're not even close to finishing. They want to keep making plans until the sandstorm appears."

"Good," I said, making my way to the door.

"Woah, woah! Where are you going?"

"Inside. I want to be there."

Jaime shook her head. "Trust me, you don't want to. You'll be falling asleep like me."

"Probably. It's just that, I was never allowed to be in my family's meetings. They said I wasn't old enough."

"They're right. It's not the last meeting you'll be able to participate in. Besides, they'll fill us in on the important stuff. Everything else is fluff." Jaime's eyes lit up. "Have you seen their pond yet?"

"Actually, no I haven't."

She called me over. "Come on, let's check it out."

I took note of the missing swords on her hip. "Ilias told me that you always carry your swords."

"I do, but I've gotten tired of carrying them while we were in the desert. We came here to rest, right? I'm letting my hips rest."

"That makes sense. You don't seem too worried about the ring around your throat."

Jaime's lighthearted attitude turned serious all of a sudden. "Can we not talk about that? I feel so powerless every time I think about the situation I'm in."

"Sorry."

"It's okay. I don't think I'd have an easy time reassuring someone of their demise either. I'm not good with words coming out of my mouth. I just try to remind myself that in fifteen days, two things can happen. Either I survive or I die. There's no need to stress out. If I stress out and die, then I should've used that time to accept my fate. If I stress out and survive, then what was the point tormenting myself?"

"That's a funny way to look at it."

She tapped her temple. "Swordman's mentality."

We found the pond and its four guards discussing something. They seemed like they were rushing to finish a job.

"What's going on?" Jaime asked them.

"Oh, it's the travellers. Every Terra Kha'Sim, we cover the pond. If we don't, the sand will go inside and suck up every drop of water."

"Where's the cover?"

"That's what we're working out. It's a big and heavy tarp so we're working out which two are getting it."

"Why don't you all go? Four hands are better than one."

"Someone has to stay guard here."

"We'll do it. I'm going to be the greatest swordsman in the world and she's a Stand user."

I partially called out Comfortably Numb's arm and waved.

The guard pointed to Jaime. "And where is your sword, Greatest Swordsman in the World?"

Jaime embarrassingly scratched her head. "Umm. I kind of left them in my room. I can borrow one of yours."

"If you want to help, you can help bring the tarp here." The guard pointed at me. "You're a Stand user, right? Then that's five hands."

"Come on, we're new here and we came to check out the pond," the elf girl grovelled. "Besides, we took down Nagas out there. We have more use staying here."

The guard sighed. "Fine. The three of you, come with me. You girls, we'll take ten, maybe fifteen minutes."

"Take your time, we'll help with the tarp."

Once the guards were gone, we just stood there. A few villagers passed, not paying us any attention.

"What now?" I asked. "This is just a normal pond."

"Nope. It's a pond in the desert that makes this area liveable. An oasis."

"Other than that, what's actually interesting about this pond?"

Jaime thought hard for a while, her head almost seemed to expand while she was in thought. "Okay, fine. It's just a pond. Do you want to skip rocks?"

The pond was calm, its still waters reflecting my gaze back to me. "I don't think it's smart throwing rocks into this. It may come off as disrespectful."

Suddenly, the surface of the pond's bank exploded with a giant splash. Instinctively, Jaime and I hopped back. I called out Comfortably Numb and had it hover in front of me. Jaime attempted to reach for her swords but grabbed air. She ground her teeth and hid behind me.

Out of the explosion emerged four figures: one was a suit of armour, a cheetah-man with a man bun, an elf whose body was covered with tattoos, and a charismatic man with a single long canine.

Essio waved a friendly hello. "Greetings, My Lady. It's been a while. You've grown so much since last time."

I snorted. "The last time you saw me was when I passed by your camp."

"Well, before that. Obviously."

Jaime bared her teeth. "Oyecomova!"

The tattoed elf ignored her.

"How did you find this place?" I questioned.

"Don't worry, this place is hard to find." Essio stared at his reflection on the pond's surface. "We just cheated a bit to bypass the stones."

When Clint was telling us his story, he mentioned that he was in a contract with the Night Dancers that prohibited him from giving away their abilities in any way.

"Don't hurt anyone, please," I begged.

"My Lady, please stop worrying. We're not going to hurt anyone. That's if I get what I want. And only you can give that."

"What do you want?"

Essio pointed at me. "You, of course. Your father has been worried about you. So worried that he put out a statement that he wants you to return. He even promised a big reward to anyone who brings you home. I have already decided that, that anyone is me."

"I'm sorry to burst your balloon, but I'm already going home. So what if I say no?"
"There are two ways we can go about this." Essio looked around the village. "It's incredible that this place has survived for so long in such a dangerous place. It'll be ashamed if it gets taken out. That's the loud way. Or, you can come with us and it'll be like we were never here. That's the silent way."

I looked around and noticed how even though dangerous men had invaded this place, the village still seemed peaceful. The nearby group of children stared at us, waving at the Night Dancers.

I was headed home anyway and Father had ten times as much wealth as what Essio can imagine. If I had to go with them to keep the village safe—to keep my friends safe—then it was a no-brainer.

"I'll go with you."

Jaime gripped my shoulder. "What? The village hall is close. We can run for help and take these guys on."

"I've decided that this is my choice. Please, respect it."

"Is it really?" she asked before loosening her grip.

I stood frozen, taking in what she just said.

"You care too much. That's your one flaw," she said simply. "Learn to be selfish from time to time."

Essio had to walk over and take me to their side.

"Don't hurt her," I asked Essio. "Please."

"No worries. I keep my word. No hair in this village will be touched."

Oyecomova finally spoke. "Besides, we have unsettled matters."

Jaime peered at him.

When the five of us jumped into the pond, we found ourselves flying out of a mirror sitting on the ground. We were now at a nearby rock formation where a man with a fuzzy hat, a young man who licked his lips, and a hawk were waiting.

And just like that, I, yet again, found myself all alone.