[ME] To See and Pray [OPEN TO ALL]

Amalia nods in quiet agreement, though her eyes do not leave the assembled soldiers, the quartet of Outlanders on the pale field. They are ants, she thinks, bound together by a singular purpose, unaware they march to what may well be their doom. The spire looms monolithic before them, a testament to their foolishness: dark and menacing, hungry and absolute. She shivers despite the noonday sun, chewing her lip thoughtfully, a worried notch in her brow. Why do they think they can do this, now? Defeat the spire monster, that ancient foe? And if they do- what then?, she wonders, remembering with a hungry ache the promise of a world beyond the walls. If the monster is killed and the bubble comes down, what will happen to that beautiful place she has never seen? Will it crumble and die, the way the Hollowed Grounds have, infected by a plague of hubris and pride? Why should the rest of Caido have to suffer, just so a few could be free? (Don't we deserve to be free?) Evie's declaration of her brother's relationship pulls the baker from her thoughts. "Oh?" she replies with quiet surprise, following her friend's gaze in hopes of finding Sam. Though she has spent significantly less time with the other Wordsworth twin, she still feels a pang of empathy: she would ache to see someone she cared about among the vanguard, be they Natural or Outlander. Ronin is kind, Remi sweet, but they are not the ones who matter most, the ones who have managed to wedge themselves into her heart. She casts her gaze around again, hoping to spot more people she knows among the assembled crowd. She wishes she could find Rory, or Deimos. She hopes they will not do something foolish and fight. Amalia sighs and looks back at her friend, shaking her head again. "Vi alone knows," she replies bitterly, half angry, half hopeful, not sure whether to laugh or cry. "What if killing the monster doesn't change anything? What will this have all been for?" (What if it changes everything? What will their freedom have cost?) Amalia Her eyes, they know too much. She'll treat you like somebody but you just can't touch.