Chapter 64

The world went black. The first thing Nick saw when he woke up was the setting sun. He was riding on what he thought was his father’s back, but it was surprisingly soft. What highway was this? Why were they walking so late? Were they camping again? Nick’s parents were kind. They tried their best to teach him everything they knew, including how to read and write, how to do math, how to sing, what wild grasses were edible, how to haggle with a merchant, how to read and write a contract, and even how to negotiate with a people without written language. If there was ever something he couldn’t comprehend, his “teacher” would stay with him until he learned it. His teacher knew everything and didn’t treat Nick like a child. She acted like an older sister to him. But no one ever told Nick what he really wanted to know. His parents called themselves traveling merchants, but what was their real job? Who really was the teacher, and why did she only seem to appear when called for? Who were they running from? Nick figured they didn’t tell him those things because he was weak. He worked as hard as he could to not be a burden on their travels. He slept on his father’s back when he was too tired to walk, but he hated slowing them in any way. That was why Nick’s dream as a child was to live in a city. He wanted to live in a wood or brick house with his family and sleep in a soft bed without fear of being pursued. It was a wish so meager, it could hardly be called a dream. He wanted to go home, but there was no home to return to. Nick and his parents had been traveling from town to town as long as he could remember, so in a way, the highway was his home. And yet that desire never left his mind. “I wanna go home…,” he muttered. “We’re almost there.” The voice he heard from the person carrying him wasn’t his father’s. It wasn’t his mother’s, either. It was the curt voice of a girl. “Where am I?” Nick asked. “The road home.” Nick’s consciousness slowly came into focus. He finally realized that this was the highway back to Labyrinth City from Pot Snake Cave and that Karan was carrying him on her back. “Hey… Put me down…,” Nick said, his speech weak and slurred. “No. Don’t move. You sound terrible,” Karan commanded. “Oww… My mouth hurts. My jaw hurts. Everything hurts…” Nick was worse than sore; the moment he became aware of his body, it felt like he was being stabbed by a thousand tiny needles. He didn’t even need to move to feel pain. “You don’t remember, Nick? You fell headfirst into a puddle of pot snake venom after you shoved Karan aside,” Zem said with a small smile. He was walking behind them. “I drank the medicine, right…?” Nick asked. “You probably would have been unhurt if you inhaled poison in mist form, but you swallowed liquid poison and fainted immediately. It is thanks to the medicine that you are here. We were this close to having a use for that body bag,” Zem answered. “What were you thinking?” Bond muttered. “Why should our leader be the most reckless member of the party? You need to abide by our name and ‘survive,’” Tiana said. “Now, now,” Zem said to calm them down. He inspected Nick’s eyes and throat without the usual gentleness a doctor showed an overeager patient. “You are fine. Do your best to bear the pain.” “Geez, this is so embarrassing…,” Nick muttered. “You’re worried about embarrassing yourself after saving my life? Stop talking. You’ll bite your tongue,” Karan chided, but Nick didn’t listen to her. He was worried he would faint again if he stopped speaking. “You took this road home alone last time,” he said. “Yeah,” Karan responded. “You really are amazing.” “Uh-huh.” “Do you want to keep working as an adventurer?” “Yeah, I do.” Karan agreed without hesitation and stared at the setting sun. She wasn’t watching the night sky or the stars that were blinking into view behind it but the sun itself, seeming to enjoy its beauty as it painted the sky red. “If you do something that reckless again, Nick, I’ll kick you out of the party,” she said. “Sorry. That was stupid of me,” Nick apologized guiltily. Karan laughed, as if she could see his expression without even turning around. “I have to say, though… I kind of like it when you act stupid,” Karan said. She blushed in the light of the evening sun, but Nick didn’t see it. He just looked at the distant sky and smiled. “You should follow your heart. If you want to do the right thing, do it. If you want to keep adventuring, don’t let anyone stop you. I’ll support you, even if you laugh at me for doing stupid things. I’ll probably rely on you more than the other way around, though,” Nick said. “You’ve got that right,” Karan responded. “Here’s to many more adventures. Let’s live life to the fullest,” Nick said. The red evening sky slowly turned blue, and lights could be seen turning on in the distant city. The Survivors leisurely made their way toward them. This was the road home.