I'm Tired.

[The weight of the moment crashed down on them like a collapsing world. Their way home—gone.]

[Their only chance—obliterated. And the one responsible stood right in front of them, still shaking, still unaware.]

ILLEGAL HOUND: "WHAT THE HELL DID YOU JUST DO, BAPO?!"

[Hound's voice was raw, teetering between rage and desperation, cracking like shattering glass. The words echoed through the air, thick with disbelief. Bapo flinched, his breath hitched, and his body trembled. His blackened eyes flickered back to normal as if waking from a nightmare.]

BAPO: "Wha—What happened? Let's go home."

[He turned, expecting to see the shimmering portal behind him. Expecting relief. Expecting salvation.]

[Nothing.]

[Only Ecto's lifeless body sprawled across the ground, blood pooling beneath him, the air disturbingly silent. Bapo's smile twitched. His stomach twisted into knots. His chest heaved with an unease so strong it made him feel sick.]

BAPO: "W-W-WHO DID THIS?!"

[Aqua's face twisted with fury, her voice slicing through him like a dagger.]

AQUA: "ARE YOU REALLY ASKING US THAT?! ARE YOU REALLY OUT OF YOUR MIND, BAPO?! YOU ACTUALLY KILLED ECTO! HE WAS OUR ONLY WAY HOME! HOW COULD YOU?!"

[Tears poured from her eyes, but they were more than sadness. They were the embodiment of frustration, of betrayal, of hopelessness. Steller stepped forward, her voice barely holding back a scream.]

STELLER: "Bapo… ARE YOU SERIOUS?! WHAT MADE YOU DO IT?!"

[The accusations hit him like a storm, each word slamming into his chest, weighing him down, suffocating him. His hands clenched into fists, his breath was uneven, erratic.]

[Tackler, standing apart from the group, didn't react like the others. His pupils shrank, sweat beading on his skin, his mind racing.]

TACKLER (in mind): "Why isn't anyone looking at it…?"

[And then Saifur's voice cracked through the chaos, filled with something different—regret. He shook his head violently, his face pale with horror.]

SAIFUR: "IT'S NOT HIS FAULT! DAMN IT! I SHOULD'VE—" sniffs "I SHOULD'VE UNDERSTOOD WHAT ECTO WAS TRYING TO SAY!"

[Hound stood still, his fists clenched so hard his nails dug into his palms. He didn't speak, but his shoulders trembled. His head was lowered. The only way home—destroyed. The weight of it was unbearable.]

[Tackler's mind reeled. His breath was shallow, body tense, paralyzed by what he had seen. Not what the others saw—no. Something far, far worse.]

TACKLER (in mind): "Didn't anyone else see it…?"

[He had seen it. The twisted horror behind Bapo's vacant stare. That wasn't a human smile. It was grotesque. Unnatural. His jaw had slackened, stretching unnaturally, black saliva oozing from the corners. It wasn't him. It wasn't BAPO.]

TACKLER (in mind): "IT'S NOT HIM! IT'S SOMETHING ELSE! WE WERE NEVER SUPPOSED TO LEAVE FROM THIS PORTAL! THIS WAS PLOTTED FROM THE START."

[His heart pounded, his knees wobbled. Fear gripped him tighter than ever before. He swallowed, then stepped forward—pulling Bapo into an embrace, muffling his choked sobs.]

BAPO (shaking): "I'm sorry… I DIDN'T MEAN TO… I SWEAR, I—I JUST BLACKED OUT FOR A MOMENT! TACKLER, PLEASE, BELIEVE ME!"

[Tackler squeezed his eyes shut. He didn't have the words. He didn't even know how to explain what he saw.]

TACKLER: "I know… it wasn't you. It was a glitch… but…"

[The words died in his throat. He was exhausted. His mind was breaking apart at the seams.]

AQUA: "What… what do we do now?"

[The question hung in the air, heavy and suffocating. No one had an answer.]

TACKLER: "I don't know…"

HOUND: "I'm tired…"

STELLER: "I just… I wanna go to sleep. Someone, make a base or something…"

HOUND: "…No need. We found a house on the way… Let's just go."

[As they turned to leave, Saifur stopped, looking down at Ecto's lifeless form. His chest tightened, his lips parted, but the words were barely above a whisper.]

SAIFUR: "Hey… let's bury Ecto first. He may have been our enemy, but… he was a good guy."

[No one argued. The air was too heavy. The silence too deafening. They dug, hands trembling, bodies weak. Each throw of burying him felt like another weight pressing down on their souls. When it was over, they didn't say a word. TACKLER stumbled, his legs giving out beneath him, collapsing to the cold ground.]

TACKLER: "Hey… Hound… carry me. I'm too tired…"

[HOUND didn't hesitate. He understood. Tackler had fought something far beyond what any of them could comprehend, he gives TACKLER an arm to walk along with.]

[STELLER suddenly fell to her knees. Aqua rushed to her side, gripping her shoulders.]

AQUA: "Steller?! Are you okay?!"

[Steller's face was pale, her body weak, her voice barely audible.]

STELLER: "Y-Yeah… just need a little sleep…"

[AQUA was about to help her walk when Saifur stepped forward, his voice quiet yet firm.]

SAIFUR: "Aqua, step aside. I'll carry her."

[AQUA hesitated but complied. With a subtle motion, SAIFUR lifted STELLER using controlled wind pressure—gentle, precise, effortless. STELLER settled into the floating embrace, eyes fluttering shut. HOUND watched, impressed despite himself.]

[But as SAIFUR moved, he found himself staring at ECTO's grave. His chest tightened, a lump forming in his throat. He blinked rapidly, keeping his face neutral, but the weight of it all crushed him inside. They finally reached the house.]

[BAPO walked behind them, dragging his feet, head lowered. He could still feel something inside him. A presence. A lingering whisper at the back of his mind. He clenched his fists, swallowed hard. No one spoke to him. No one could.]

[And then, TACKLER, barely keeping himself upright, glanced over his shoulder.]

TACKLER: "Bapo… let's talk tomorrow."

[It wasn't an accusation. It wasn't blame. It was exhaustion.]

[One by one, they entered the house, retreating into separate rooms. Not to rest. Not to heal.

But to process the nightmare that had just begun.]

 [NEXT VOLUME COMING SOON!]