Passenger

Chapter 29

I followed Ripley as he headed away from the river bank, carrying Krys on his back. The bandit, if it was even worth calling him that, was humming a pleasant little tune to himself as he walked, which annoyed me to no end.

Several times I tried to rouse Krys, with no results. I wanted to get him away from Ripley. Idiot or no, I didn't trust the man one bit. He was too off-kilter for me to know if he would actually help Krys, or just dump him somewhere to die. Not that there was much that I could do now. Once again, I was helpless to do anything.

Thankfully for that issue, Ripley proved to be true to what he had said, to a degree at least. After another ten minutes or so of traveling, Ripley was entering a small campsite with the remains of a campfire, and a decent-sized tent and sleeping bag.

I hovered close as Ripley placed Krys down on the sleeping bag, dusting off his hands. "there!" he declared, seeming satisfied. "you rest there, my new charge! I shall return shortly with food from my bear vault! Ha-ha!"

With that, he darted off. I watched him, confused. Bear vault? Like the kind of bag you'd keep in a tree, to keep bears from getting at the food? There probably wasn't a bear in a thirty-mile radius of the river. This guy was weird.

Whatever. Turning my attention away from the thief, I floated down towards Krys to look him over. "hey, Krys." I called gently. "are you awake yet? You doing okay?"

No answer. Krys looked restless and uneasy as I looked down at him, clearly not sleeping peacefully. He shifted and turned every so often, face contorted into one of either discomfort or pain.

As I watched him, there was a flash of something across his body. Quickly I glanced towards where it had seemed to come from, but didn't see it again. "what the..." I murmured, glancing around, then looking back down at Krys to see if it would happen again.

There! A flash across Krys' arm, a flash of energy. Magic – Red Magic, no less. I watched him closely, and it flashed again like a miniature lightning bolt, prompting me to frown. Why was his Red Magic acting up – hadn't he said it was confined to his body or something? Maybe he was having a bad dream...

What happens if he wakes up and his Red Magic is acting up? The sudden thought filled me with worry, and probably would have sent a chill down my spine if it could have. If Krys woke up right now from whatever dream he was happening...would he fall into that Omega State again?

In response to the dilemma, I sighed and shrugged. "well, doesn't seem like anyone's that close." I muttered. "apart from Ripley, obviously. But honestly, who really cares if that guy gets killed? He's a jerk and an idiot. Quite literally the worst combination possible."

Krys would care. That little voice chimed in again.

I scowled at myself. So? Krys cares about everyone. He's a pacifist. He wouldn't hurt the grass he walked on if he could help it. Does his opinion really count?

The little voice had an answer. Yes, because it matters to you. And if he hurt someone, he'd feel terrible.

...ah, dammit. I cursed a few times under my breath, then glanced back and forth. No sign of Ripley still. Somehow I was supposed to keep Krys from waking up in a murderous rampage now. Sure. Why not?

What to do, what to do? The best way to prevent the problem was to try absorbing his magic again, like I did in the fight with Sarah. But hadn't I only been able to do that because the magic was being actively used? It was all still vague and confusing; it didn't feel like there was a good rhyme or reason for this. I watched the Red Magic flash across Krys' arm, and he mumbled something in his sleep. Well, it was certainly there. Maybe if I just...reached out and tried to find it...