The wagon is pulled by sumpter beasts that have adapted over the centuries to tolerate the heat of the desert and the sand beneath their paws. Al-Haitham sits at the front of the wagon with a book about ancient runes settled in his hands. He stares at the page unseeingly, unable to close the book even when the rocking of the wagon makes all the inked letters blur together. His thumb presses down on one of the pages, feeling the way the parchment absorbs the heat that wafts underneath the shade of the wagon's cloth roof.

Another distraction comes in the form of the other people in the wagon with him. A servant sits at the front of the wagon, controlling the sumpter beasts with reins. Kaveh sits across from him, his eyes closed and head tilted towards the roof to expose his neck. His mechanical companion, Mehrak, settles into Kaveh's lap, silent as if it were sleeping. Nilou sits right beside Al-Haitham, fiddling with the cloth of her skirts as she speaks to Tighnari on the opposite side of the wagon. Collei is half-asleep at Tighnari's side, her notepad flipped open and slipping from her grasp. Candace watches out for the notepad with as much attention as she scans the area behind the wagon, her spear and shield gripped tightly in her hands. Nilou and Tighnari are both fairly quiet as they speak, and Candace often adds her input at certain intervals, but Al-Haitham cannot read his book with their chattering so close to his ear.

There is another wagon traveling alongside the one they are in. Regent Azar sits in that wagon, accompanied by Faruzan, Layla, and Cyno. Sethos was also allowed to partake in the journey as formal training underneath Cyno in the same way that Collei was allowed. Technically speaking, Collei was told she must come with them, and Sethos wiggled his way into an invitation from the regents with a friendly smile and clever words. Al-Haitham personally oversaw the formation of the journey, so he was there to witness Azar's half-hearted attempt at hiding his disdain for Sethos' attendance. Azar said nothing about casting Sethos out, however, and the other regents were also silent on the matter.

The purpose of their trip was to one of the far cities in the nation, Gurabad. It was near the former heart of the rebellion that cropped up some years ago. Each of the sages was meant to inspect the physical manifestation of their respective job descriptions. Nilou was going to supply rain to the city, and Candace was her guard while Dehyra remained behind to protect Sumeru City. Azar was going to double-check that the rebellion had been subdued, and Al-Haitham was going to write whatever was dictated to him. That fact alone made Al-Haitham suspicious about why Collei was forced to attend which is the biggest reason why he cannot read the book in his hands. Al-Haitham had suspected Azar knew the truth behind Collei's past. This nearly proves it, but it opens the question of why Azar hasn't revealed it yet.

What did Kaveh exchange in place of Collei's freedom? It was a question they all held. Al-Haitham hasn't been able to ask it since Kaveh has been blatantly ignoring him. Al-Haitham is not the only one, though. Kaveh hasn't gone to the tavern with Cyno and Tighnari since the deal has been struck. Kaveh greets Collei and Sethos in the street, but even the children are barely given a moment with the blonde architect. The servants have told Al-Haitham that Kaveh only leaves the house for work, but that he spends the majority of his time at home working on a project that keeps him in his office for unhealthily long stretches of time. Al-Haitham hasn't been able to see the blueprints for the project, nor has he been able to have a proper conversation with the architect.

Although Al-Haitham usually dislikes trips, he is hoping to use this one to back Kaveh into a corner. The architect won't talk unless he feels as if it is his only choice. At this point, it might be Kaveh's only option. There is a part of Al-Haitham, a mix of his heart's emotions and his mind's ability to see patterns, that tells him Kaveh is about to make a decision that he won't regret but shouldn't have to make. Al-Haitham knows it because Kaveh's habit of disappearing— if that is the only term Al-Haitham can find for it— has gotten worse.

"Kaveh," Tighnari's voice cuts through the wagon. Tighnari grabs onto Kaveh's wrist, drawing the blonde out of whatever daze he puts himself in to make this journey go by faster. Kaveh frowns as he lifts his head, his eyes darting over at his friend. Tighnari is frowning back at Kaveh. They say nothing even as everyone in the wagon glances at them, save for the dozing Collei. Al-Haitham's grip tightens on his book, realizing that Kaveh might have been disappearing when he was lost in thought.

"Are we there yet?" Kaveh asks. His voice is as light and fleeting as starlight as he turns away from the group to look at the area in front of the sumpter beasts and the driver. Kaveh's frown deepens when he realizes they are not in the rebellious city. He looks over his shoulder at Tighnari with confusion shining in his eyes as if he's too out of it to remember that he's supposed to be indifferent towards his friends. "Did Mehrak do something?"

Kaveh looks down at the cube in his lap. He scoops the machine into his hands. A humming noise fills the wagon as Mehrak charges with energy. Al-Haitham knows it to be divine energy, feeling the pull of it against his fingertips as Mehrak absorbs it. With enough energy in her system, Mehrak opens her glowing green eyes. She spins around the air, expanding into her briefcase mode. Mehrak scans her eyes over the people in the wagon until she finds Kaveh. She beeps affectionately, pushing up against his chin like a pet when their owner comes home. Kaveh giggles quietly to himself, gently nudging Mehrak away from him. Kaveh frowns petulantly at Tighnari. "How can you be upset with someone so adorable?"

"I was not talking about Mehrak," Tighnari protests, squeezing Kaveh's wrist. Kaveh stares at the touch for a long moment. Al-Haitham tries to decipher the emotions in those carmine eyes. Each of them is fleeting, quick to come and even easier to go. Al-Haitham has a variety of Kaveh's expressions in his databases with a majority of nuances accounted for. This is not one of the expressions he knows, but that is probably because it looks like Kaveh is showcasing a few emotions all at once.

"Good, because she's useful, too," Kaveh answers, pulling his wrist from Tighnari's hold. Kaveh snaps his fingers. Mehrak moves to his side, facing the onlookers staring at her and Kaveh. When Kaveh tilts his head forward, Mehrak displays a projection of a building outlined by green divine energy. Kaveh spins the projection around, showing off a 3-D blueprint for something he must be working on. Al-Haitham is originally curious if this building is the one Kaveh has spent weeks building, but Al-Haitham knows that it isn't when he recognizes the building as something in Port Ormos. Kaveh snaps his fingers. The projection disappears. Mehrak's metal parts slide away slowly to reveal a gaping black hole. Kaveh sticks his hand in. He pulls out a tool. Kaveh spins the protractor in his fingers in a way that he must have learned from Tighnari. Kaveh drops the protractor back into Mehrak, and she seals herself up by reassembling into briefcase mode. Kaveh gives a dramatic bow, and Mehrak's digital face flashes with pride similar to her master.

"That's so cool, Kaveh! Does it use divine energy like the resonators?" Nilou asks, leaning forward. She gets closer to Al-Haitham unintentionally in an effort to get closer to Kaveh. The scribe shifts minutely to maintain a certain distance. Neither Nilou nor Kaveh notice as the architect leans forward to meet Nilou halfway. That also gets Kaveh closer to Al-Haitham, but the scribe doesn't move away from Kaveh. Even if they are fighting right now, Kaveh and Al-Haitham have been far closer to each other. They've slept in the same bed twice, and that's not counting all the times they've fallen asleep on the couch while tangled together. Tighnari notices Al-Haitham's movements or lack thereof, but his amused smile is crumpled by the odd sense of worry in his eyes. He is silently asking if Al-Haitham noticed the disappearing act, too. Al-Haitham nods once, and that's all Tighnari needs to see for him to wear a tense expression.

"It does. This is a piece of God-King Deshret's technology, so it must be absorbing his divine power specifically. It uses the power to project holograms and create a pocket dimension in which I can store materials. It's actually super handy for an architect such as myself. I couldn't have asked for a better tool!" Kaveh tells Nilou. He places his hands on his knees, eyes flickering over to Al-Haitham for a moment. He returns his attention to Nilou. "Unlike that one, I'll tell you exactly how Mehrak works without any of the nonsense he tries to pass off as logic."

"Where did you get it from?" Nilou asks with wide eyes as Mehrak flies closer to her. Nilou opens her hands like a blooming lotus. Mehrak drops into Nilou's hands as a cube, her digital face scrunched together to show a happy expression. She looks content as Nilou showers her with attention.

"A friend gave it to me as a gift. We didn't know what it was going to do at first since it was only a mechanical core, but I guess she sensed that there was something special about it," Kaveh answers with a huff, his lips quirking with a smile as he recalls the memory. Al-Haitham tenses. Al-Haitham knows all of Kaveh's friends, and he knows that Kaveh has been ignoring all of them. This gift-giver must be someone new. Al-Haitham feels something cold settle in his stomach. Is this the reason Kaveh has been ignoring them? Is he trying to protect this new friend from them, or is there something romantic going on?

The odd sensation in Al-Haitham's chest that he assumes must be jealousy even if it's his first time experiencing it fades when the light catches on the bracelet around his wrist. The silver reflection reminds him of the new companion that has been appearing at his side infrequently. Nahida told him that they had a mutual friend who wished for Al-Haitham's happiness. Kaveh told Al-Haitham once that all he wanted was Al-Haitham's happiness. Although neither fact is enough to prove that Kaveh's new friend is Nahida, Al-Haitham would be a fool to dismiss it as the most likely possibility. The only question Al-Haitham is left with is what Nahida's purpose is. If she is the friend Kaveh was talking about, she befriended Al-Haitham for the explicit purpose of helping Kaveh with his goal. Is she helping with the task the regents gave him? Why? Was she lying when she said she didn't mind remaining in her cage— whatever that meant— or was she trying to trick Kaveh into doing something for her?

Why does Al-Haitham feel uneasy when he tries questioning her motives like a rational human being would?

"We're approaching Gurabad," The driver calls over his shoulder. Al-Haitham glances up from the bracelet to see the sprawling city that was once the beating heart of the rebellion to overthrow God-King Kusanali. The city has suffered the consequences of being defeated. The buildings are growing dilapidated. The sparse amount of people in the streets are wearing tired, tense expressions with dark eyes bubbling with hatred and envy. A man is wearing finer clothing than the rest standing near the entrance of the city. He covers his head with a hat, letting the shadow of it hide the thin white scars across his sun-stained face. He holds himself like a soldier with his shoulders straight and hands behind his back as he waits for the sumpter beasts to stop a few feet away from him.

Candace jumps out of the wagon, landing gracefully on the sand. She puts her weapons away as she turns her heel. She lifts her hand to Nilou. The dancer wears a grateful smile as she takes it, letting Candace help her down from the wagon's back.

Since Tighnari is trying to wake Collei up without touching her or frightening her, Al-Haitham jumps down from the wagon. He lands in a squat, pulling himself upward. Similar to Candace, Al-Haitham turns around with a hand lifted. Kaveh's hands are gripping the wiring of the wagon as he stares at the sandy ground. His lips part in surprise when he notices Al-Haitham's hand. Kaveh's expression shifts as he ponders the right course of action, and Al-Haitham waits patiently until Kaveh lowers his hand into Al-Haitham's. The touch is still familiar as Al-Haitham pulls Kaveh forward. The architect makes a surprised noise as Al-Haitham catches him by the waist. Kaveh's face blushes a bright red color as Al-Haitham sets him on the ground. His wide eyes linger on Al-Haitham, and the distance between them feels nonexistent for a moment. The seconds pass, unfortunately, and Kaveh's cold glare returns to his face. Kaveh pushes Al-Haitham's hands away from him. Kaveh takes one step backward, looking at the air behind Al-Haitham. Kaveh turns around. He goes to the servants speaking to Azar. Kaveh joins their hushed conversation with Mehrak, leaving Al-Haitham with the heat of Kaveh's body lingering on his hands.

"It's progress," Tighnari notes. Tighnari reaches his hands above his head to protect himself from the sun. His ears droop to merge with his dark hair. Collei stands beside her master. Once she stretched her limbs, she hurriedly unties the cape around her shoulders. She throws it on top of Tighnari. The Vulpes Sage smiles gratefully at his apprentice. Collei's entire face lights up with the unspoken praise. She darts away to join Sethos as if embarrassed by her own feelings.

"I need to introduce a new variable," Al-Haitham tells Tighnari, watching the hybrid try to hide himself from the sunlight. Side by side, Al-Haitham and Tighnari start walking over to the group huddling around the man in charge of Gurabad who reports directly to the regents. The former soldier is pointing at different places around the city as he talks. Kaveh has a hand on his chin, staring at the buildings with the keen interest of an architect and the eyes of a man with a bleeding heart.

"Do you need any help?" Cyno asks, joining the group. He is carrying a few of the bags in his arms. The majority of the bags, however, are being taken care of by Sethos and Collei. Candace is hovering near them in case anything falls. Nilou is giggling at their antics, doing her best to help them balance all the bags in their arms.

"I need to get Kaveh alone in a place with very few entrances and exits. If I can corner him, I can exchange his freedom for the truth. If not, I am certain I can think of other ways to extract information from him," Al-Haitham explains to them. In situations such as these, simple plans are often better than more compounding ones. Al-Haitham doesn't need some elaborate scheme to convince Kaveh to talk to him. He need only remind Kaveh that there are people he can talk to, and there are reasons why the truth would be better exposed. If that does not work, Al-Haitham will consider more complex measures.

"The Cyno way of information extraction or the way I don't want to hear more details about but probably will hear about when Kaveh starts talking to us again?" Tighnari asks grumpily, his tail swaying unhappily in the heat of the desert. While Tighnari does share characteristics with foxes, he is definitely not of the desert fox variety. Even his abilities as a resonator and the extra Akasha system Cyno arranged for him to have done very little to keep Tighnari from feeling the intensity of the sun and wind.

"I will use whatever means I deem applicable," Al-Haitham shrugs. Tighnari groans, and Cyno stifles his laugh. Al-Haitham ignores both of their reactions as they join the rest of the group. The soldier in charge of Gurabad notices immediately. He begins walking, setting a brisk pace as they delve into the city. Al-Haitham keeps his attention on the soldier as he starts explaining everything around him without any of the flair of a proper tour guide. Al-Haitham prefers it this way, but he notes how some members of the group— Kaveh (and Mehrak), Nilou, Collei, and Sethos— are having trouble keeping up because they want to look at everything. Candace is forced to stick with them to protect them in case the people of Gurabad attack.

There is also the matter of someone recognizing Collei. There are some differences between the person she is now and the weapon she was while living in Gurabad, there are certain details that cannot be erased even with the passage of time. There are scars all over her body that come from her time here. Her eyes might not glow nor do they resemble the pupils of a snake, but the purple color is the same shade as the corrupted flames she used to conjure in her pursuit of bloodshed. Her hair might be healthier and curlier, but the green has not varied much as she's grown older. Some people will remember her, either as a force equal to nature's fury or as a reason to believe the rebellion might succeed. They will see her as either a traitor or a spark for something new.

"We should hurry along," Kaveh says suddenly. Mehrak beeps worryingly. Nilou glances at Kaveh, finding what she's looking at. She wears a tight expression as she tells the children to race her. Collei and Sethos share a look, far smarter than most give them credit for, but they agree to race Nilou. The three of them are trailed by Candace and Mehrak. Kaveh lingers a moment longer. Al-Haitham moves to him. He grabs Kaveh's hand. There is a moment when Kaveh lets this happen. He intertwines their fingers, nothing on his face to give away that he understands what's happening right now. When Kaveh does notice, he looks at their hands before he looks up at Al-Haitham's face. The peaceful moment ends with a sigh from Kaveh. He smiles very slightly, his voice ghostly as he whispers, "You never make things easy for me, do you?"

Al-Haitham opens his mouth to respond, but Kaveh has already pulled his hand away from Al-Haitham. He doesn't jerk his hand away, but Al-Haitham would rather that than the slow release. Kaveh walks away from Al-Haitham. He disappears back into the crowd, and Al-Haitham is struck with the sensation that he's lost Kaveh again. Instead of letting him go as he did at the party, Al-Haitham searches through the crowd. When he finally sees Kaveh, he grabs onto the architect. Kaveh throws his head over his shoulder, bringing his hand up to fight off whoever grabbed onto him. His eyes widen when he notices Al-Haitham. He is about to say something when Al-Haitham starts pulling him out of the crowd. They are going to lose the others, but Al-Haitham is less bothered by that than the fact that Kaveh keeps disappearing.

Al-Haitham brings Kaveh into an alleyway. It is dark and hot with a strange dampness that manifests from the puddles on the ground. Al-Haitham presses Kaveh's back into the wall. He closes his arms around Kaveh's shoulders, locking the architect in. Kaveh chuckles awkwardly, his carmine eyes looking around for some easy escape. Al-Haitham leans closer, forcing Kaveh to look into his eyes. Kaveh tries to glare at Al-Haitham, but the tremble in his hands is easy to see even when Al-Haitham's attention is almost entirely pinpointed on Kaveh's morphing emotional state. Kaveh stops trying to glare, but he keeps a tight leash on all of his emotions as he forces his hands into fists. He takes a deep breath through his nose, and it feels like they are about to play a waiting game to find out who breaks first.

Al-Haitham is sick of games. "What is going on with you, Kaveh? And do not lie to me and say nothing is going on. You are making deals with the regents. You are spending all your time in your office without eating or sleeping properly. You are ignoring your friends. You are ignoring me."

"It doesn't concern you," Kaveh answers instead, crossing his arms over his chest. His hands are still shaking, but it's harder to see with the way he hides them in the folds of his elbows. Kaveh attempts to look away, his eyes illuminated by the light seeping into the alleyway from the street. A couple of people glance over at them, but their assumptions mean nothing since the people of Gurabad will never get involved in other people's business even if they are witnessing a crime. Kaveh will find no help from them. He will find help from his friends, and the truth will set him free altogether.

Al-Haitham reaches one of his hands up. Kaveh almost makes a break for it, but Al-Haitham grabs onto his chin. He forces Kaveh to look at him. Al-Haitham leans closer still. The alleyway is dark and smells awful. The heat is oppressing. There is no wind or rain to give some reprieve. There is very little about this situation that resembles that moment in the rain, but Al-Haitham glances at the ribbon tied around his wrist next to the bracelet Nahida gave him that has kept his migraines at bay. Al-Haitham feels the same right now that he did at that moment underneath the storm clouds. He feels the same as he always has. And although there is fear on Kaveh's face, that sparkling shimmer of love is also there. No matter what is going on, that fact has remained unchanged.

"It does concern me because it is directly affecting your health and happiness. It concerns me because it concerns you, Kaveh. If you tell me the truth, I will help you figure all of this out. We will find a solution to whatever problem you have gotten yourself into this time," Al-Haitham promises. His voice is quiet and logical, but even he can hear an odd softness creeping around the edges like a motion blur in one's peripheral. Kaveh's eyes widen minutely, and maybe he notices it, too. Maybe he's only concerned about their closeness. Maybe it's Al-Haitham's word choice that has him hesitating. Kaveh wants to talk. He might be trying to give an excuse or expose the truth, but he wants to talk. He simply isn't.

Kaveh lifts his hands. They tremble all the way to Al-Haitham's face, and they continue to shake even as they hold Al-Haitham's face. Al-Haitham leans into them, granting some sort of permission to the person in front of him. Kaveh breathes out unsteadily, something quietly breaking— either his heart or his resolve from the way his eyes shine with unshed tears. Al-Haitham loosens his grip on Kaveh's chin, giving him the opportunity to close the distance or to run away. Kaveh does neither. He remains apart from Al-Haitham, but their hands are on each other's body. Kaveh's hands steady his presence in Al-Haitham's mind even as he feels the architect standing on the cusp between being part of this world and allowing himself to be taken by the undertow. Al-Haitham is a man of patience, so he remains stationary as he waits for Kaveh to finally take what he wants.

"There you two are! The regent was looking for, and he sent—" A voice comes from the entrance of the alleyway. Al-Haitham is willing to ignore it, but Kaveh pulls his hands away jerkily with surprise. He slips away from Al-Haitham. The scribe sighs, his hand closing into a fist as he glares at the empty wall right in front of him. When Al-Haitham glances over, Nilou and Candace are standing at the entrance. Candace is staring intently at Kaveh. Al-Haitham and Nilou share a look. Nilou mouths an apology. Al-Haitham says nothing as he pushes off the wall without saying anything.

"We should head back to the others," Kaveh says, avoiding everyone. His skin from his neck to his ears is bright red with his embarrassment and shame. Guilt glints in those eyes. Al-Haitham might not be the only person who notices it because Candace hurries after Kaveh even when she is meant to be protecting Nilou. She trusts Al-Haitham to protect Nilou, but she wouldn't have followed after Kaveh if it wasn't serious. Maybe she has seen something with her golden eyes. The truth is always laid bare before her aureate iris.

"The regent told me to come get you two. Well, he told me to come get you. He said that it didn't matter if I brought Kaveh back. I'm starting to think you and the others were right about whatever the regents and Kaveh have going on," Nilou whispers to Al-Haitham as they try to catch up with Candace and Kaveh. Al-Haitham gives them a little berth, however, hoping that Candace might be able to learn what Kaveh will not come out to say himself. "I should have known that you were talking to him... Or trying to confess your feelings. Are you certain that you two aren't already romantically involved?"

Al-Haitham ignores such questions. For a long time, Al-Haitham felt as if he and Kaveh were. They never said anything about it, and they never went deep into romance territory, but half the things they did were activities shared between couples. Al-Haitham was content with that, but he should have known that he needed to do more to prove it to Kaveh. The architect's habit of self-loathing was becoming an even bigger hindrance these days.

"I have an idea. We need to give you two an opportunity that's a little more romantic than an alleyway. I will tell Kaveh that I have invited everyone to an outing near the edge of Gurabad to watch the sunset. The only people who will arrive will be you and him. You can confess your feelings or try to get the truth out of him. Hopefully both because you two are adorable," Nilou says, tapping her fingers against her lips as she thinks.

Al-Haitham hesitates, his brain processing the words at the same time his memories do. "Is that not similar to what happened to you and me?"

"Hmm... oh, you might be right. Do you think someone is trying to set us up?" Nilou asks, her eyebrows furrowing with confusion.

Al-Haitham stares at the back of Azar's head. Kaveh is walking right next to the regent. Mehrak is beeping uncomfortably between the two of them. Al-Haitham's eyes narrow into a glare. "It is not impossible. Let's go with your plan, Nilou."