Lucas searched for Darian the following morning, and found him in the hall where they first met. The coin already flipping between his fingers as a nervous looking survivor stood before him, hands clasped tight as he waited.
He flicked the coin and it landed in his palm. He glanced at it, his expression unreadable before speaking.
"Tails."
He looked at the man and spoke again. "Heads, you stay, tails, you don’t."
The survivor’s face fell entirely, as a desperate expression found it’s way on his face. "Please. I don’t have anywhere else to go. I’ve been walking for days, I—"
"Tails," Darian repeated, cutting him off with an almost gentle tone, though there was nothing gently in how he said it. "That’s how this works. I don’t make exceptions."
"You could just look at me. Decide for yourself. Anything other than a coin—"
"I could," Darian agreed. "But i won’t. Deciding for myself is how leaders start playing favorites, start letting fear or pity or drag on decisions that should be simple. The coin doesn’t care who you are once it lands. Neither do I."
The survivor turned and walked away, shoulders slumped, and Lucas watched them go with an uneasy feeling.
’A coin flip.... Someone’s entire fate, someone’s survival, decided by a coin flip because that’s just how this man runs things.’
He understood in that moment something he hadn’t fully grasped before...
Whatever this world had done to people, it hadn’t just created monsters and systems. It had reshaped the people in it too, completely bringing out a part of them that defined who they really were.
"You’re staring," Darian said, not looking up as he pocketed the coin.
"Just processing," Lucas said carefully.
"Don’t waste time feeling guilty about it. I don’t." Darian finally turned to face him, expression easy despite the exchange moments earlier. "What brings you here so early?"
"I’m leaving," Lucas said. "Today, if I can manage it. Tomorrow if I’m lazy. I need to find the next Gateway."
Something flickered across Darian’s face, something close to surprise before quickly smoothing over. "Chasing a way back to your own Faction?"
"Something like that."
"Smart to move fast, then." Darian’s tone sharpened slightly, businesslike. "Gateway positions reset every Edgewalk. Whatever crossing exists right now won’t necessarily be there once the next Edgewalk begins. If you’re planning to use it, you’ll want to find it before that happens."
"How long do I have?"
"Unclear, exactly. Could be days. Could be considerably less. We don’t exactly have a timer counting down like back home." Darian shrugged, unbothered by the uncertainty in a way that suggested he’d made peace with far worse odds than this. "My advice? Don’t linger longer than you need to."
"Noted. Thanks. For everything, he coin flip that let me stay here especially." Lucas said in a dry tone.
"Don’t thank me, Thank the coin." Darian grinned. "Good luck out there, Terror."
Lucas gave a nervous smile. "I’d appreciate it if you didn’t call me that right before I leave..."
Darian laughed at that, and Lucas turned to leave. The doors shutting behind him.
***
Lucas found Yor in the small medical room where she’d first tended his wounds, and something in her expression shifted the instant he told her he was leaving. First surprise, then quickly followed by resignation.
"Today?" she asked.
"Tomorrow. Feeling lazy all of a sudden."
"I see," was all she said after am amused smile.
She busied herself with restocking supplies that clearly didn’t need restocking, and Lucas watched her a moment before speaking again.
"I appreciate everything you did," he said. "The arm, the wounds, all of it. I would have been in a really sticky situation if it wasn’t for you.."
"You would have," Yor said,. "You seem like the type who manages, one way or another. But—" She paused, setting down whatever she’d been holding and meeting his eyes properly.
"I’ve enjoyed this. Talking to you, I mean. It’s not every day you have someone here who actually listens instead of just needing to be patched up and sent back out." A small smile before she spoke again.
"I’m going to miss you—" she caught herself immediately, trying not to sound weird, she tried to reform the sentence. "Having you around, i mean— uh,...." The words came out messy as she stammered before using her hand to cover her face.
Lucas laughed, felling something warm settle isettle in his chest as he replied. "I’ll miss you too."
"Nooo that’s not what I meant..."
Yor buried her face deeper in her hands, her face flushing a shade of red.
They talked longer than either of them probably intended to that evening, nothing too serious, just stories from before the sky cracked open. Ordinary things that felt precious now.
He told her about Mark and Eleanor, about all the small, ordinary things that had defined his life before it became this instead.
They talked and laughed late into the night, oblivious to how much time had actually passed.
***
Morning came not long after.
Lucas gathered what rations Darian’s people had spared him and made his way to the gate, where Darion stoop with his hands in his pockets.
"I see you’re all set?"
"Yeah, I am."
Darian nodded before speaking: "There’s a gateway along the southern ridge. Keep moving and you’ll pass through a field. Once your’re there, it means you’re close. Avoid facing any monstrosities unless you absolutely have to."
"I’ll keep that in mind. Thanks." Lucas said gratefully.
He walked further to were Yor was already waiting, arms crossed, expression composed despite the sign that told him that she didn’t want him to leave yet
"Ready?" she asked.
He shrugged. "I don’t really have much of a choice..."
She studied him a long moment, and then, before he could say anything further, she crossed the distance and pulled him into a tight hug.
"Be careful," she said, voice muffled against his shoulder. "Whatever you’re walking into, just be careful. Don’t do anything stupid."
Lucas was a bit stunned at first, but his expression softened as he wrapped his hands around her waist. "I will," he said, "I’m kind of hard to keep down..."
She pulled back eventually, her composure returning with visible effort. "Go on, then. Before I talk myself into asking you to stay longer."
Lucas managed a small smile, shouldered the pack, and turned toward the gate.
"Thank you," he said, one more time, "I’ll be going now."
She waved and watched Lucas disappear into the distance...
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