I Can See Evolution Paths

Arthur finally stopped playing with Star and looked toward the compass. The needle remained pointed north. He pocketed it. "Alright. As much as I’d like to keep playing with Star, we should probably keep moving."

Star bounced happily in Eden’s arms, and Athy tilted her head at the little slime’s enthusiasm. "I think that’s approval," she said.

Arthur laughed. "Then let’s go."

The group began following the old dirt road, Vedas walking beside Arthur while Eden carried Star cradled against her chest. Mithra glanced over at the tiny creature. "It’s surprisingly calm," she said.

"It’s probably tired," Eden offered, looking down at it.

Star immediately wiggled, as if to prove her wrong.

Eden paused. "...Or maybe not."

Arthur smiled. "I think it likes being carried." Star stretched one small pseudopod toward him, and he raised an eyebrow. "You want me?"

It wiggled again, and Arthur scooped it up.

Vedas sighed. "You’ve had it for one day and it’s already spoiled."

"It’s our first day together," Arthur said, as if that settled everything.

Mithra couldn’t help smiling. "You said that about Eden."

Eden immediately looked pleased with herself. "Arthur spoiled me too."

Vedas looked at his partner with something between exasperation and amusement. "You have a pattern."

Arthur laughed. "Apparently."

The group continued along the dirt road, and at first everything looked ordinary. The enormous trees still surrounded them, vines hanging overhead, small insects moving lazily through the undergrowth. But gradually Arthur began to notice something was missing. There were fewer Beasts than there had been earlier.

Eden looked around, her earlier excitement giving way to a small frown. "Where did everybody go?"

Vedas glanced into the trees, scanning the shadows. "I was wondering the same thing."

Athy, perched on Athena’s shoulder, said quietly, "There were more creatures here earlier."

Arthur looked toward Athena. "You noticed?"

She nodded. "The density of Beast activity has dropped considerably since we crossed the barrier."

Sun looked around uneasily. "Maybe they’re scared of us."

Kong gave a proud grunt at that.

Sun glanced at him. "Actually, probably you."

Kong nodded, entirely satisfied with the theory, and Arthur laughed despite the growing unease settling over the group. Then, without warning, something crashed through the bushes ahead. Everyone immediately tensed, weapons half raised, but it was only a pack of Ironhide Wolves tearing across the road. They didn’t so much as glance at the group. They simply ran, vanishing into the trees on the other side just as quickly as they’d appeared.

Arthur slowly lowered Dusk. "...They’re fleeing."

Vedas watched the space where they’d disappeared. "They didn’t even slow down."

Mithra’s expression tightened with concern. "What could make a group of Ironhide Wolves run like that?"

Arthur looked toward the north, where the road continued into deeper shadow. "Something," he said simply.

Sun sighed. "Of course."

A few minutes later, another group rushed across their path, this time a herd of Frostback Boars, their thick gray bodies covered in hardened patches of ice that clattered faintly as they ran. One nearly barreled straight into Sun, who jumped aside just in time.

"Hey!"

The Boar didn’t even register his existence, thundering past without breaking stride.

Kong watched the herd vanish into the underbrush. "Fast," he observed.

Sun stared at him. "That’s your contribution?"

"Yes."

Arthur laughed, and even Vedas allowed himself a small smile despite the tension building beneath the humor.

Then Arthur’s expression sharpened as a thought occurred to him. Arthur watched the empty road for several seconds before looking toward the direction the Beasts had come from.

"That’s two species," he said. "Both running from the same direction."

Athena nodded slowly. "And neither group showed any interest in us. They weren’t fleeing from another Beast nearby."

Vedas glanced toward the trees. "They were trying to get away from something."

Mithra frowned. "But what could frighten both Wolves and Boars enough to abandon their territory?"

Arthur looked toward the sky where the Azure Talon Hawks had disappeared. "Let’s find out."

Sun sighed. "I knew you were going to say that."

Arthur smiled. "You know me well."

Luna had grown noticeably quieter as they walked, her eyes fixed toward the northern forest. Arthur noticed and slowed slightly so he was walking beside her.

"Luna?"

She looked at him. "Hm?"

"You know something?"

She hesitated, her fingers tightening slightly around the strap of her bag. "Not exactly." When Arthur waited, she eventually looked toward the north herself. "My grandfather used to say that the farther north you went, the stranger the Everglades became."

Arthur’s eyes brightened immediately. "Stranger?"

Luna nodded. "He called it the White Frontier."

"That’s a pretty good name," Arthur said, grinning.

A small smile crossed Luna’s face despite everything. "He liked dramatic names."

Athena looked genuinely interested now. "Did he actually travel there?"

"Sometimes," Luna said, thinking back. "But he never stayed long."

Arthur immediately asked, "Why?"

Luna’s gaze drifted back toward the forest ahead of them, where the shadows seemed to deepen the farther the road stretched. "He said the Beasts didn’t behave normally."

Arthur’s smile only grew wider at that. "Now I’m even more interested."

Sun groaned. "Of course you are."

A shadow suddenly swept across the road, and everyone looked up in unison. A flock of enormous birds cut across the sky above them, their blue feathers catching the sunlight in brief flashes, wings wide enough to throw shadows across the entire road.

Athena studied them for a moment. "Azure Talon Hawks."

Mithra looked surprised. "Those are predators."

"They’re flying away," Arthur observed.

Vedas tilted his head back to watch them disappear over the treeline. "And quickly."

Before anyone could respond, another group appeared behind them. These were smaller, Cloudscale Drakes, silver scaled and translucent winged, several of them screeching in obvious distress as they flew.

Eden’s eyes went wide. "Dragons!"

"Drakes," Athena corrected gently.

Eden pouted but didn’t argue. "They’re still cute."

One of the Cloudscale Drakes suddenly dipped its head downward, and for a brief second its eyes met Eden’s. Then it immediately accelerated away, faster than the others, vanishing into the gray sky.

Eden blinked, her earlier delight fading into something quieter. "...It was scared."

Arthur looked up at the empty sky where the drake had been. "Even flying Beasts."

Vedas crossed his arms, his expression grim. "Whatever is ahead is frightening enough to make predators run."

Arthur’s eyes shone with something closer to excitement than caution. "Or there’s something they don’t understand."

Athena looked at him sidelong. "You really can’t help yourself, can you?"

"No," Arthur admitted cheerfully.

He stopped walking not long after, crouching beside the road so suddenly that Vedas took several more steps before noticing he’d fallen behind.

"Arthur?"

Mithra walked back to join him. "What did you find?"

Arthur pointed toward the ground, where dozens of tracks crisscrossed the dirt. Wolves. Boars. Birds. Drakes. Different species entirely, and yet almost all of them were moving in the same direction. South. Away from wherever they were headed.

Arthur traced one of the larger tracks with his finger, feeling the depth of the impression. "They’re all coming from the north."

Athena knelt beside him, studying the pattern. "And they’re all leaving through this road."

"Which means something is driving them out," Arthur said.

Luna watched him carefully. "My grandfather said something similar."

Arthur looked up at her. "What?"

"He said the northern Beasts sometimes abandoned their territories without warning."

Arthur’s eyes immediately brightened. "Did he know why?"

Luna shook her head. "He never found out."

Arthur smiled and stood, brushing dirt from his knees. "Then we’ll find out."

Vedas sighed, though there was no real complaint in it. "You really do treat every mystery like an invitation."

"Isn’t that what an expedition is for?" Arthur asked.

Vedas considered this for a moment. "...Fair."

As they continued north, the environment began to shift in ways that were impossible to ignore. The trees grew thinner, their branches sparser, and the vegetation along the road shortened until it barely reached their ankles. The air itself grew colder with every passing minute.

Mithra pulled her cloak tighter around her shoulders. "It’s getting cold."

Sun rubbed his arms briskly. "Finally, someone said it."

Vedas glanced at him. "You’re cold too?"

"Yes."

Kong, walking a few paces ahead, seemed entirely unbothered by the dropping temperature.

Sun eyed him. "Don’t look at me like that."

Kong tilted his head, studying him. "Weak."

"You don’t even have skin," Sun shot back.

Kong looked down at his own stone covered body, seeming to genuinely consider the point for the first time. Arthur laughed at the exchange, and even Athena cracked a small smile despite herself.

Meanwhile, Star had begun reacting to the cold in its own way. The little Slime slowly spread itself across Arthur’s shoulders, forming a thin translucent layer over his cloak.

Arthur glanced down. "What are you doing?"

Star wiggled.

Athena leaned closer. "It’s responding to the temperature."

Arthur pressed a finger against its surface. "It’s getting thicker."

Mithra smiled. "It’s adapting to the cold."

Arthur’s eyes lit up. "Already?"

Star bounced proudly against his shoulder.

Vedas looked at it for a moment. "It’s surprisingly useful."

Arthur nodded. "And it’s only been with us for a short time."

Another snowflake drifted down and landed on Star.

The little Slime immediately stopped moving. It slowly extended one tiny pseudopod toward the snowflake.

The snowflake disappeared into its body and Star bounced.

Arthur stared at it. "Did you just eat the snow?"

Star bounced again.

Mithra laughed. "I think it liked it."

Arthur smiled. "Good to know."

Vedas sighed. "We’re going to have to watch what you feed it."

Arthur looked at Star.

"We’ll figure that out later."

Star happily settled back against his shoulder.

The temperature continued to drop as they walked, the sunlight growing weaker beneath the thinning canopy overhead until it barely filtered through at all. Then, without warning, a single white speck drifted down and landed on the back of Arthur’s hand.

He stopped walking. He looked down. The snowflake melted almost instantly against his warm skin.

Eden suddenly flew upward, startled. "What was that?"

Another snowflake landed on her head, and she looked up just as more began drifting down around her, scattered at first and then thickening steadily.

Her eyes went wide with delight. "Snow!"

She spun through the air, laughing, snowflakes catching in her hair and wings.

Mithra watched her with a soft smile. "It’s beautiful."

Sun tilted his head back toward the sky, frowning slightly. "Snow... in the Everglades?"

Athena’s expression turned serious almost immediately. "That shouldn’t be happening here."

Luna had stopped walking entirely, staring ahead at the whitening landscape with an expression Arthur hadn’t seen on her before, something between recognition and quiet dread.

"...We’re close," she said.

Arthur looked at her. "To the White Frontier?"

Luna nodded. "My grandfather said the snow always began near its boundary."

Arthur looked at the falling snow drifting silently around them, and something in his chest tightened with anticipation rather than fear.

He immediately took out the compass. The needle was still pointing north, but now it had begun trembling faintly in his palm.

His expression shifted. "It’s reacting."

Athena stepped closer to examine it. "More strongly than before."

Luna watched the needle’s slight tremor with familiarity. "My grandfather’s compass did that too."

Arthur looked at her. "When?"

"Whenever he got close to something he was searching for."

The needle suddenly swung a few degrees northeast before settling back to true north. Arthur watched it happen and smiled. "We’re getting closer."

Vedas looked ahead into the whitening trees. "To the Mirror?"

Arthur didn’t answer immediately, his eyes still fixed on the compass, then lifting toward the falling snow. "Probably," he finally said.

Athena narrowed her eyes at him. "Probably?"

Arthur’s smile widened. "We’ll know when we get there."

They pressed on.

The trees ahead grew increasingly pale, their bark bleached nearly white, and snow began accumulating in soft drifts along the exposed roots. The dirt road beneath their feet slowly disappeared beneath a thin, unbroken layer of white. But they still hadn’t fully crossed into the snowy region, not yet.

Then a wounded Glacierhorn Elk suddenly stumbled out onto the road ahead of them, its enormous body swaying unsteadily.

Mithra rushed forward immediately. "It’s hurt!"

Melo moved with her, tails low and cautious. The massive Elk collapsed onto its front legs, its great antlers coated in a layer of blue white ice that hadn’t fully melted despite its labored breathing.

Mithra knelt beside it, examining the wounds along its flank. "It’s alive."

Melo’s ears flattened. "It’s terrified."

Arthur crouched near its head. The Elk’s eyes were wide and wild, darting constantly toward the north, never settling, never calming.

"What happened to you?" Arthur murmured.

The Elk suddenly lurched, trying to push itself upright.

Mithra reached out. "Wait!"

But the creature forced itself onto its legs and bolted south past them, disappearing into the trees they’d just come from without a backward glance.

Arthur watched it go. Vedas studied the tracks it left behind in the snow. "It didn’t even let us heal it."

Arthur slowly stood, brushing snow from his knees. He watched the direction the Elk had fled for several seconds. Vedas studied the tracks disappearing into the trees. "It didn’t even let Mithra heal it."

Mithra lowered her hand. "It was terrified."

Arthur nodded.

"It wasn’t just trying to escape its injury."

Luna looked at him. "What do you mean?"

Arthur pointed toward the north.

"Look at its tracks."

Everyone followed his gesture.

The Elk’s footprints were deep and uneven, showing where it had stumbled. But despite its injuries, every step had carried it farther away from the north.

Arthur’s expression became thoughtful.

"It was more afraid of whatever is ahead than it was of its own wounds."

Nobody immediately answered.

Sun looked toward the pale forest. "That’s not exactly comforting."

Arthur smiled faintly. "No." He looked toward the snow-covered trees. "But it is interesting."

The group reached the edge of the forest a short while later, and for several seconds nobody spoke. Ahead of them, the trees were completely transformed. The ground beyond stretched out in an unbroken sheet of white, snow covered branches reaching into the distance like frozen fingers, and a low frozen mist clung close to the earth.

Somewhere beyond those trees, carried faintly on the wind, came the sound of cracking ice.

Eden’s eyes shone with barely contained excitement. "Can we go?"

Arthur smiled. "We’re going."

Vedas exhaled a visible breath into the cold air. "I’m already cold."

"You’re a Goblin King," Arthur pointed out.

Vedas gave him a flat, unimpressed look. "That’s not how cold works."

Arthur laughed.

Luna stepped forward quietly, staring out at the endless white landscape stretching before them. "...The White Frontier," she said, almost to herself.

Arthur looked at her, then down at the compass in his hand. The needle pointed directly into the snow, unwavering.

He smiled. "Then let’s see what’s waiting for us."

Arthur took the first step into the snow.

The crunch beneath his boot sounded strangely loud in the silence.

The others followed close behind.

Star wiggled excitedly against his shoulder while Eden flew a little farther ahead, weaving between the pale branches.

Vedas stepped into the snow and immediately looked down at his feet.

"I already hate this place."

Sun laughed. "You’ve been here for three seconds."

"That’s enough."

Arthur smiled as he continued forward.

Behind them, the familiar green of the Everglades gradually disappeared beneath the falling snow. For a while, nothing happened and then Arthur’s eyes suddenly flickered.

[Reality Sight]

His vision changed for the briefest moment.

The snow remained snow.

The trees remained trees.

But far ahead, beneath the white ground, something appeared wrong. A faint distortion ran beneath the surface like a crack in reality itself.

Arthur stopped.

"..."

Athena noticed immediately. "Arthur?"

He blinked, and the strange image disappeared.

Arthur looked toward the distant white forest.

"Interesting."

Vedas turned toward him. "What did you see?"

Arthur smiled. "I’m not sure yet."

He continued walking.

Nobody noticed the compass in his hand trembling slightly.

The needle was no longer perfectly steady.

It was pointing north.

But beneath the snow, something was pulling it deeper.

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