In the Palace gardens, a lone soldier stands guard by a modest headstone. The moment would be peaceful were it not for distant whoops and cheers.

“I didn’t like you.

“Let me make that very clear. You nearly killed my fiancé; I’m not here out of any affection for you.”

Then why are you here, Officer Fisher?

“I… It’s not right, what they’re doing today. ‘Tisagday.’ They might try to vandalise your grave – I won’t let that happen.”

I see. Guilt. A performative display of guilt.

“I really did try to do what you wanted, but we never would have succeeded. There would have been a fight with Aina’s forces and…”

She pauses, frustrated.

“This is ridiculous. Why do I still feel like I have to justify myself to you? I made a strategic decision. I made the right decision.”

You may tell yourself whatever fantasy you want. That is all you are doing here, after all: talking to yourself and wasting your own time.

She’s quieter now. “I keep wondering if we’ve made a terrible mistake.

“I’m trying to fix things. I’m making a guide for when Ahmed is freed, to find a better solution: a world like yours, but with more checks on the Antagonist’s power.

“I think that’s where you went wrong. You needed someone to stop you from going too far: a counterbalance. That’s what I am for Rhys; he will never stop, so I can’t either.

“Maybe that’s why you didn't give me a role? Maybe you wanted me to find one for myself?”

She sighs. “I don’t know what you’d say next. I wish you were still here to give me answers.”

She pauses, hearing the mocking laughter from the streets.

“I won’t forget you. Not the Antagonist caricature from Tisagday, but the real you – the Head Scribe who defended our utopia until he died.”

Incredibly presumptuous of you to claim to know ‘the real me.’

She chuckles to herself. “That’s all I have to say. But I’ll return every year on this day – I'll tell you how the world changes.”¹⁾

---

Marina flinches.

She can’t help it. That’s her little boy in the water and she’s desperate to grab him and take him far away.

Skimmer notices, of course. Still supporting Kai with one strong arm, he reaches out another and squeezes her hand.

Kai’s tiny wings, peppered with black and white feathers, flare in excitement. With one particularly energetic splash, he sends a spray into Marina’s face. “Come in – it's fun!”

Despite the shock, Marina can’t resist smiling. Kai – named after her fearless brother – is already so brave. As Skimmer begins to make an excuse for her, she interrupts, “Alright, I will.”

Her heart races as the water crawls over her skin, but she manages to appear calm for Kai’s sake. It's difficult, but as time passes, she remembers how comfortable she used to feel amongst the waves.

Afterwards, Skimmer turns to them both with a beaming smile. “I’m so proud of you.”²⁾