Note: Unedited. Shall be revised after completion.

---

It would've been a great place to camp if the island wasn't waiting to devour them whole.

The sky was overcast and there were clouds rolling in. Darius looked around to see if anyone else seemed to have an issue with this weather. He saw none and decided to tell the sailors he'd gather wood for the fire.

Aloysius had decided to stay behind and observe what the crew was doing and see if he could get anything else from their equipment.

The trees seemed to be too peaceful for his own liking. There were no birds chirping and not a single animal had shown up. It was as if the only ones that are listening to their chatters were the trees themselves.

It was unusual, Darius thought before returning back to the forest to retrieve his axe.

As Darius reached for it, he could hear rustling behind him. He swiftly turned around, raising the axe and ready to defend himself. Only to sigh as his lover stared at him amused.

"Still on guard as ever, love." Calista couldn't help but muse as Darius lowered the axe and carried the wood that was on the ground. Pointing over his surroundings, he shrugged.

"This island is too quiet. It's uncommon." Darius replied as Calista nodded. He then walked past her to start gathering branches. She did the same, making sure not to stray that far away from her lover.

"Maybe it's because the people don't really go on this island?" Calista offered. "Or they haven't discovered it yet."

"It would be impossible for Arkenheilm not to find this land. It's unlikely." Darius frowned deeply. His eyes scanned every inch of the forest until he was sure that the coast was clear from any creatures.

"Something doesn't feel right here, but I can't put my finger on it."

"What do you plan to do about that?" Calista raised her eyebrow. Darius looked down at his feet as the silence stretched on.

"For now, we're going to rest. If we're going to be here for a while, we might as well save our energy and gather some food." He let down his guard when he spotted Aloysius walking through the foliage to join them.

Aloysius looked confused. He walked up to them and gave them both a questioning look. "You both look like you saw a ghost."

"No, just not used to the whole chills in the air," Calista responded as she gestured to the surrounding forests. Aloysius hummed as he looked back at the forest before returning his attention to the two men.

"Found anything?" Darius asked as he handed him the wood to take back. "I'll be exploring a bit further so if you could return those back to the camp, it'd be great."

"Nothing interesting really." Aloysius shrugged before continuing, "I'll take these back but wait for me here. I'll come with you."

Darius nodded as he finally saw Aloysius running with the firewood in his hands back to camp. Knowing it might take him a while, Darius sat on a log as Calista bid farewell, telling him she still had to manage the tents back at their spot.

Once Aloysius returned, he told the two of them they could continue exploring by themselves. Darius nodded but made sure his sword was still ready. Aloysius continued to discuss different notes and information he jotted down from the sailors and Darius followed close by, watching the area for dangers.

They eventually came across a huge tree, bearing fruits and bushes all around it. Aloysius approached the edge to check it out while Darius stood next to him. Before they could even think of investigating, they heard crashing noises coming from behind them.

Their backs immediately stiffened at the sound and they started to turn around. Darius held his sword high, eyes focused on where the sound had come from.

"Show yourself!" He shouted. Aloysius drew his dagger and armed himself as well.

Suddenly, a woman appeared in front of them. Dressed in what looked like a cloak and was also carrying a large backpack. They assumed that she was a traveler as well. Just not from the same nation.

She didn't move to attack them and instead looked at the two of them curiously.

The stranger took her bag off and pulled out some items. Canned goods. She then smiled gently at them and offered it to them. Though with their guards still high up, she decided to wrap it on one of the silks she had and put it on the ground. "If you're here for food, the fruits of that tree are not your safest bet."

Darius lowered his hand, letting out a sigh of relief as Aloysius did the same. "We're just here to investigate the island. We're hoping to find the natives."

The woman nodded as she opened one of her things. It revealed a wooden container with berries inside. "I brought this from my hometown. My name is Solstice. I suggest you go back to wherever you came from and not stay here for too long."

Solstice held one of the berries in her palm and offered it to each of them. Darius hesitantly reached forward to grab the fruit. He was hesitant to eat something natively from another continent, considering he's never seen anything remotely like it, so he was hesitant to try anything.

However, after being in the company of Aloysius, who ate everything and anything, he thought about it again and grabbed the fruit with his left hand. He took a quick bite of the strange fruit, not expecting to taste anything at all.

His expression changed into one of surprise as he chewed slowly and swallowed. He had expected a sourness but he tasted sweetness instead. It reminded him of the sweet berries he grew in his old country. "How do they taste?" The woman asked curiously.

Darius was still trying to chew and swallow all the flavor in one go as he said, "Sweet."

She nods at this before furrowing her eyebrows and asking them, "So what brings you here? I've never seen sailors in these parts before. Especially not Bridgeven Tides."

Aloysius spoke softly, "We're actually looking for the Angelus, one of our ships that sank at Malum Trench. We were planning to know what happened."

"Oh, lost sailors then," the woman mumbled as Aloysius raised an eyebrow.

"Pardon?"

Solstice stared at him. "Malum Trench is on the other side of the ocean. Were you swept out of direction?"

The two looked at her with wide eyes. "Other side?"

"This place is the island between Everfrost and Arkenheilm. Malum Trench is nearer Gryndale. And I'm afraid you're nowhere near the place."

She noticed how tense the two sailors were before speaking once again. "Our leader, Elysaria, has a map of the nations along with its island. However, she's back at Arkenheilm or either on an expedition."

She took something out of her backpack. It was an old-fashioned map, complete with a detailed depiction of the island and the island itself. Her gaze then fell on Darius.

"I could guide you to Arkenheilm first. The waters of the Regimere are a dangerous trek. It would be better if you would at least have someplace to stay for a moment."

Darius quickly realized that the woman had read his mind. He took a second to process her question and then said, "I never thought that Arkenheilm would be this welcoming to sailors."

"Why? What was your first impression of us?"

"We heard stories. We couldn't really tell." Aloysius admitted, looking away shyly.

"We couldn't really blame such judgments." She laughed lightly and looked at Aloysius with an amused expression.

"I'll lead you to where Arkenheilm lies. Then, you can decide for yourselves what you think of us."

"Thanks," Darius replied.

Solstice had been observing the pair since the beginning. She had observed their conversation, noting their backgrounds: sailors of Ravenbourne.

Aloysius and Darius seem familiar with each other. Their personalities were similar yet different, yet intriguing. At first glance, she could already tell Aloysius thinks of Darius as more of a brother than a friend.

But that wasn't surprising since the man was very loyal and protective of anyone who deserved it. Aloysius and Darius seemed to trust each other unconditionally.

She wondered why they stayed together. Why they trusted each other with their entire lives? She thought perhaps, there is something more than meets the eye.

Her train of thought was interrupted when she realized Darius had turned back to her, holding the map in his right hand. She blinked surprised and stared curiously at it. It didn't even dawn on her that he had noticed her staring as he began pointing to various spots on the island.

"There are notes on this map. Are you perhaps a researcher?"

Solstice nodded. "Yes, one of them actually."

"Then why are you the only one here?"

"The leader's right-hand woman, Elysaria, was stationed on another island. Plus, I took it upon myself to be the first one here. I was the one who proposed to Arsen that I'd be the one stationed in this place," Solstice beamed before walking up along with them.

"And the others?" Darius asked as he kept pointing towards places on the map. Solstice walked a few feet ahead and turned slightly to answer.

"Just like Elysaria. Scattered. However, I'm not sure what islands." Darius nodded at that before glancing over to his friend.

"Anything else besides the fruits that we should know about?"

"Actually there is one thing..." Solstice faced them both. "Don't let your sailors hear the siren's hymn during the night."