After getting off of a boat near the west coast of Fallonia, the crew decided to face their way back to The Atrium with relief: setting up camp became more exiting because they could all sit down and rest together. Gathering around a small fire to eat dinner every night was Aspen’s favorite part of the endeavor. Hearing the soft, warm crackle of fire as it lit the faces of her laughing friends made her feel less empty. Falling alseep in a big pile of limbs, hair, “get off of my leg” and “stop elbowing me” whines, although annoying some nights, gave her comfort knowing that people aknowledged her, maybe even called a friend. Ruelle didn’t seem to understand the dynamic between the seven kids. She would stare blankly at the black, star-speckled sky every night, sleeping far away from the others. Aspen couldn’t quite grasp what her sister had been through, nor did she really know, but she could understand how she felt. She was trapped her whole life, but now finding solace from a bunch of teenage warriors. It sounds pretty ridiculous. Sadly, Aspen felt that these people were more family to her than Ruelle or any one else back at The Palace of Angels. I guess that’s okay though, right? I mean, family isn’t always defined by blood.

During an especially long night, Kenji wondered “How are we going to justify taking the Jewels to the board?” I guess no one thought of a real answer because everyone paused for a second, letting the crickets take up the silence. “Well,” Oria started, “we tell them the truth. We needed them to find the heir that they wanted us to retrieve. ” “I thought we were supposed to lie to them” Kenji replies, confused. He really needed to work on his moral compass, but that’s for another time when they aren’t saving a whole monarchy.